Breaking and Entering
by Ash M. Knight
Summary: Emma is a young troublemaker who makes a hobby out of breaking into houses. When she unknowingly breaks into the house of the wealthy Regina Mills - her classmate from school - things take an unexpected turn. Teenage SwanQueen AU.
1. Chapter 1: Breaking and Entering

The driveway was empty, and all the lights were off, which made the enormous, elegant house a target. Emma wasn't exactly careful when she chose her adventure, but she wasn't careless either. That being the case, she came prepared with pepper spray and a pocketknife, as well as her trusty lock-picking kit. This made entrance into the quiet house an easy feat – at least for someone as experienced at breaking and entering as she was.

 _In and out,_ she told her herself with a confident smile as she jiggled the handle on the back door. _Grab the goods and go._

Once she was inside, her eyes widened. The inside of the building was even more lavishly adorned than its outside, and when Emma tried to make an assessments of the value of the items she could see, her head spun. _Everything_ looked expensive. But hey, if everything left out looked expensive, the real goods must have been hiding somewhere exciting. (Hopefully… not in a locked, fireproof safe.) Against her better judgement, the young blonde decided to ascend the stairs and investigate further, rather than counting her blessings and making a run for it with what she could find downstairs.

Oddly, though there were many elaborate, decorative trinkets surrounding her, there were no pictures of the homeowners anywhere that she could see. Her victims remained anonymous as she cautiously walked their halls. Before she could reach the first door, a loud creaking noise erupted from the floorboard beneath her right foot as she stepped forward.

"Oh, shit," she cursed under her breath, frantically looking around in the dark.

After a period of silence, the girl relaxed, assuring herself that – just as the empty driveway suggested – no one was home to discover her act of trespassing and burglary. Well… Technically, she hadn't burgled anything yet, but it was certainly in the plans. As she proceeded down the hall, she opened the first door on her right. When she found only a large, glass shower with multiple showerheads, a sink, and a toilet inside, she sighed and continued walking. As her eyes watched her right side for the next door, she stepped slowly forward, until, once again, the floorboard beneath her creaked loudly. As a shadow appeared beside her, she heard a high-pitched yelp before everything went black.

"Ughhh," Emma groaned as she came to, rubbing her temples as her brow furrowed to express her pain. "Where am I?"

"You're at 108 Mifflin Street," the other girl said, staring down at her. "You broke in and-"

"Oh, holy shit!" the blonde cried. "Regina?"

It was dark, but the face was unmistakable. It was her beautiful, popular, intelligent, over-achieving classmate, Regina Mills, a girl who had seemingly been handed everything she owned by her wealthy family. Everyone loved her. Everyone except Emma.

"If I knew this was your house-" Emma started, staring up at the gorgeous brunette.

Before she could continue though, the pressure of the dizziness caused her to collapse on the floor, once again losing consciousness. When she stirred from unconsciousness, Regina was kneeling beside her, looking horrified, but also seriously concerned.

"Unnnggg," Emma groaned, trying to open her eyes fully but finding herself unable to do so. "God, you hit hard. What _was_ that even?"

"It was a metal baseball bat," the girl replied simply. "You broke into someone's house! What did you expect to-"

But darkness washed over the blonde again before Regina could finish scolding her. This time, when she woke, Regina was lifting her head and helping her to sit upright.

"We have to get you to a hospital," she sighed, looking sadly at Emma, who was completely drained of color (except for the black bruise on her temple that had quickly formed from the impact of the blow).

"No F'in way," the girl snapped. "I'm not-"

"You passed out three times, and the last time you were out for three minutes. You have a concussion."

"I'm f… f… fine?" the blonde tried, but her muscles gave out, causing her to fall backwards into Regina's grip. As she was gently held upright by her classmate, she finally continued, "If you hadn't tried to kill me, I wouldn't be… wouldn't…" When the words seemed to escape her, she simply ended the sentence with, "You're a fuckin' twatwaffle, you know that?"

She had no idea how she could remember the insult 'twatwaffle,' but not the end of her sentence. Everything was foggy, except her anger. Mostly, she was angry at herself. Not for getting caught, but for choosing the wrong house entirely. She would have rather been caught by anyone else on the planet, even if it meant getting shot. _This entitled little shit is-_ she was thinking _–such a-_

"Excuse me?" Regina snapped, loosening her supportive grip on Emma as the look in her eyes darkened. " _You_ broke into _my_ house, not the other way around. You had it coming. I should have known you'd be the type to pull something like this. I always thought you were a-"

"Hey, shut up, man. I-"

"Pardon me, but you are in _my_ house, and if you don't want me to call the cops, we're-"

"Fucking call 'em. I don't care."

With a heavy sigh, Regina said, "We're going to the hospital. I'm not pressing charges, but I'm also not gonna let you die from brain injuries."

"Well, isn't that kind, little miss goody-two-shoes. Aren't you heroic?"

"You know what? You should just shut your mouth."

"Where are your parents, anyway?"

"They're away on business, as if that's any of your concern at all."

"How exactly do you plan to get me to a hospital?"

"I'm calling an ambulance, obviously."

"And telling them what?"

"That you are my close friend, who I'd forgotten was coming over, and that I got scared that I was being robbed, and accidentally nearly killed you."

"You didn't 'nearly kill me.' I'm… fine…"

"You're dizzy, and obviously confused. You have a concussion, and if you're not seen by a doctor, you could die."

"That's… horseshit," Emma said slowly, but didn't sound convinced of her own words.

"It is not 'horseshit,' thank you very much. It's medical fact."

"And what are you, a doctor?"

"No, but I'm going to Harvard Medical School next year, after I graduate."

"Well aren't you a hoity-toity god-like smarty-pants," the blonde grumbled, rubbing the side of her head.

"I'm calling," Regina told her, pulling her cell phone out of her left pocket.

"N-No!" Emma cried, reaching out for Regina's wrist but falling short of reaching it. "Listen, seriously…. I can't… I don't have… health insurance, and I-"

Regina froze, and Emma trailed off when she saw the girl's mouth drop open.

"Hey, come on," the young criminal protested. "Don't look at me like that, alright? Not everybody's family has-"

"I'll cover it."

"Regina, what the fuck?"

"We need a gardener."

"S-Sorry…?"

"My parents and I need someone to tend the gardens over the summer. You clearly have muscles… and you look like you've done your fair share of physical labor. You work for us this summer, and I'll cover your hospital bills."

"That's not a fair trade, and I-"

"God dammit! Do you have to be such a stubborn little shit?"

"I'm not a-"

"Shut up. I'm calling."

As Regina's fingers began to type the numbers, Emma screamed, "WAIT! I'M SCARED OF AMBULANCES!"

Again, Regina froze, the hand with her phone in it dropping to her side. She let out a long, heavy sigh as she stared down at the girl who was still sitting on the floor.

"Emma."

"What?!"

"There's nothing scary about an ambulance."

"People DIE in there!"

"You're not going to die."

"You said-"

"I said you could die if you don't get treated! And you know how people who don't have a way to get to a hospital get treated? THEY RIDE IN THE FUCKING AMBULANCE."

"Hey, shut up, man! I don't need your shit, okay?"

"I am _not_ a man, thank you very much, and you're lucky I didn't already kill you. I'd be perfectly within my rights to defend myself against-"

"Against what? And eighteen year old looking to steal your parents' diamonds?"

"Oh, my god. You are _so_ juvenile."

"Yeah, well… You're… What does juvenile mean?"

"Infantile."

"Uh…"

"IMMATURE, Emma! It means you're fucking immature."

"HEY!"

"You broke in to my house! And I'm sure it's not the first time you've pulled something like this."

"Well…"

"Well?"

"Well, no, but… usually I… don't… get… you know…"

"Caught?"

"Yeah. That."

"Well, maybe you should think twice next time."

"You're right," Emma told her, suddenly wearing a mischievous grin. "I need to choose my…uh… houses? Yeah, that's it. Houses. More carefully."

"Emma! That's not what I meant!"

"Yeah, yeah, Barbie. Whatever."

"EXCUSE ME?"

"You h-heard me."

"Oh, my God."

"It's not too late. You could still kill me and call it self-defense. I'll sit still, if you'd like." When Regina stared at her in disbelief, she added, "Wanna get one more shot in?"

"Why would I-"

"I dunno. Maybe you've g-got… anger issues?"

"You're unbelievable."

Emma started to smile again, almost to the point of laughter, but dizziness struck her once more, and her body started to wilt backwards. Of course, Regina caught her, her hand once again cupping the back of Emma's neck to support her head.

"You shouldn't break into people's houses," the brunette told her slowly. "It's not right."

"Easy for you to say," the thief mumbled. "You have everything you could ever want."

"Not everything."

"What?"

"Nevermind. I'm calling. Just…"

But Emma was too dizzy and disoriented to hold herself up, so Regina – needing to use her hand to make the call – moved around behind Emma and leaned the girl's back against her chest.

"Wait! I-"

"Shh. They're gonna think I'm murdering you if you keep yelling like that."

Emma wanted to pull away. She wanted to. But her body was weak – a feeling she wasn't familiar with – and she couldn't remain sitting up on her own. Instead, she reluctantly allowed herself to relax against her classmate until the paramedics arrived. Regina watched as they loaded her into the ambulance, until the blonde shot her an absolutely terrified glance, silently begging the girl not to let them take her.

When the brunette saw Emma's mouth open in what she assumed was an attempt to speak, she turned away quickly and grabbed the arm of one of the paramedics.

"Sir," she said slowly. "Would I be able to join her in the ambulance? I don't have a car at the moment, and I don't want her to be alone in the hospital."

"Sure, kid," the man said with a soft smile. "Hop in."

The look of relief on Emma's face as her classmate climbed into the back of the ambulance and sat beside her was overwhelming. It made Regina blush and look away. The paramedics began to treat the girl's wound, cleaning some of the still-flowing blood away from her cheek, and when Emma felt the touch against the side of her head, she whimpered in pain. But there was more than that in the sound. There was panic and fear that Regina had never heard coming from her before. Emma had always been the tough kid. Always talking shit. Always in trouble. Never 'weak.' Now, as she was laying on the gurney, she looked both miserable and horrified. Even as the paramedics told her, 'It's gonna be alright, sweetheart. We're almost there,' the blonde continued to look increasingly panicked, until Regina finally put her hand on the girl's shoulder. Emma's hand flew up to grab it immediately, out of pure, terrified instinct.

"It's… It's okay…" Regina told her slowly, her voice suddenly void of confidence. "You're not alone. Can you give me your parents' numbers? I'll call them and tell them that-"

"No! Don't!" Emma cried, sweat covering her forehead. "Don't tell them!"

"They're gonna know when you go home with your head bandaged anyway."

"Just… Just wait until the doctors are done with me."

"Emma, I… I don't think that's a good idea."

"Regina, come on. I-" the blonde protested as she tried to sit up.

"Miss Swan," one of the paramedics said, putting light pressure against her other shoulder to hold her down. "You need to lie still." Then, he turned to Regina and said, "Keep her talking. She shouldn't fall asleep."

"Regina!" Emma whined. "Please!"

"Alright, alright," the brunette sighed. "I'll call them later, then."

With a sigh, the girl replied with a soft, "Thank you," before shutting her eyes, a look of relief washing over her face.

"Emma…" Regina said cautiously, pushing against Emma's shoulder with her palm. "You need to keep your eyes open."

"It hurts."

"Please, Emma. You need to stay awake."

"I am awake."

"Emma."

"Fine," the girl groaned. "Whatever."

After receiving a look of encouragement from the paramedic who had just advised her to keep Emma talking, Regina offered, "Let's… Let's talk, okay?"

"What?"

"Tell me about you."

"Ha!" Emma blurted. "That's funny. Like you give a shit about-"

"Emma," the brunette hissed sternly, squeezing the girl's shoulder to emphasize the warning.

Currently, the paramedics believed that Emma was her friend, and that the wound had been a complete accident. When she'd spoken, Emma wasn't thinking about the consequences of her words. The last thing she wanted was to get caught for trespassing, though, or even worse… burglary.

"Right. I grew up on a farm in Montana, and-"

"Emma!"

"Ugh. What do you want to know?"

"What's… your… favorite color?"

"What? You don't know already, hun?" Emma asked playfully, playing along with the façade that they were actually good friends. "It's red."

"Oh, right. I knew that. I was just joking."

"Look, why don't you just tell me something I don't know about you?"

"But, I-"

"Anything."

"I think you should go first."

"I failed chemistry last semester."

Regina burst out laughing, completely unsurprised by the confession. Emma was the last person in the world to pay attention in class, and she was more than certain that the girl hadn't studied for ten minutes over the span of the entire semester.

"What?!" Emma snapped angrily, once again trying to sit up in order to more successfully and directly scowl at the girl she considered to be so pompous and elitist.

"I'm just not surprised."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Before Regina could reply, the driver of the ambulance announced, "We're here. Let's get her to the E.R."

To Emma's shock and horror – she'd never been admitted to a hospital before – the doctors did not allow Regina in the room with her. She was alone.

"Regina..." Emma said as the nurses began to wheel the gurney away.

"I'll be right here," Regina assured her with a sigh. "I won't leave." When the girl looked panicked once again, she added reluctantly, "I promise."

Only then did Emma lie back, once again wearing a look of relief.

An hour later, one of Emma's doctors appeared in the doorway to the waiting room and announced, "Miss Mills?"

Regina stood up immediately, rushing over and asking, "Is she going to be okay?"

"The impact damage is serious. She should definitely be monitored closely over the next few days for any symptoms, but the ones she's experiencing now – the dizziness, mild confusion, and vomiting – should go away within the next twenty-four hours. She should also be woken up every few hours that she sleeps, in order to-"

"Vomiting?! She's vomiting?!"

"A few times, yes."

"But doesn't that mean-"

"She'll be alright, Miss. I don't believe that the damage will be permanent. As for the bruise and the pain, that will be there for quite some time."

"Can I see her?"

"Of course. Come with me."

Once she saw Emma on the hospital bed, looking pale and fragile, Regina's a wave of guilt shoved her stomach down until she thought she might vomit as well. Emma was probably the strongest girl she knew. In gym class, she excelled and impressed everyone – even the boys – with her athletic abilities. (It was probably the only class she ever got an A in). Seeing her so weak made the impact of her actions all too obvious.

 _It was her fault,_ Regina assured herself. _She broke into my house!_ Still, the way Emma had completely collapsed on the floor after the blow stuck with her, and as much as she tried to justify her actions, she continued to feel badly about what she'd done.

"Emma," she said softly, once the doctors had left the room.

The girl's eyes fluttered open as she glanced at Regina. She didn't look angry or irritated, and she certainly didn't look as though she was about to make one of her signature smart-ass comments. She looked like she was in a daze, failing to fully register her surroundings.

"R…Regina," Emma managed. "I-"

"I'm sorry," the brunette blurted out, her words quick and pressured. "I was just frightened, and I-"

"It was my fault. I shouldn't have broken into your house."

"You shouldn't have broken into _anyone's_ house!"

"Yeah, well… That's never stopped me before."

"Well, my baseball bat certainly should."

"It won't."

"What?!"

"I've gotta pay you back somehow, and I'm sure as shit not doing manual labor for you and your well-to-do parents."

"Sure you are."

"And what makes you think that? I never agreed to your little proposal."

"Because if you don't, I'll tell your parents the truth about what happened."

'Whoa, whoa, whoa. What?!"

"You heard me."

"Regina, come on! That's bullshit! I'll pay you back! Why does it matter how?"

"I won't accept someone else's money. It's wrong. You need to learn to work for what you have."

"I have two jobs."

"What?"

"I…"

"What?"

"Nevermind," Emma sighed. "Just don't tell me I don't know how to earn my money."

"Why would you steal, then?"

The girl shrugged her shoulders and looked out the window to avoid Regina's gaze.

"No, really," the brunette pressed. "Why?"

"It's fun."

"What?"

"It's the only thing that makes me feel alive."

"That's ridiculous. Why don't you just go sky-diving or something?"

"It's not that simple."

"Emma-"

"You wouldn't understand."

"Then explain it."

"I can't. It's just something I feel."

With a sigh, Regina rubbed her temples and looked down at the frail-looking figure lying on the bed in front of her.

"You're going to do it, or I _will_ tell your parents."

"Ugh! Fine! God! You're such an entitled little brat!"

"Shut up, okay? You don't know anything about me. I'm-"

"How are you ladies doing in here?" a doctor said loudly, suddenly appearing in the doorway.

Regina shot Emma a glance, so the blonde said, "Doing just fine, doc. When can I get out of here?"

"We're going to have to keep you here overnight for observation. We'll likely discharge you in the morning, barring any complications."

"Ugh," the patient groaned. "Great."

The doctor turned to leave, and Regina pulled her phone from her pocket, announcing, "I'm calling your parents. What are their numbers?"

"I'm not telling you," Emma said simply, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Stop it. Just let me call them. We'll explain that it was an accident."

"How are you going to explain that I snuck out?"

"Would you rather get in trouble for sneaking out to hang out with a friend, or would you rather get in trouble for _breaking and entering?_ "

"Whatever," the blonde groaned, then rattled off her parents' home phone number.


	2. Chapter 2: Butterflies

As soon as her parents arrived, they were shouting.

"What the hell happened?" her mother snapped, approaching the bed with purpose.

Regina, who was standing in the corner of the room, coughed and spoke up, saying, "It was my fault. We'd made plans to hang out, and I forgot about them, so when she showed up, I thought she was a burglar or something, got scared, and sort of… hit her in the head with a baseball bat… I truly am sorry, and I didn't mean to hurt her."

Both parents blinked a few times as they stared at the girl who was, despite it being in the middle of the night, dressed well in a silk button-down shirt, and wearing diamond earrings.

" _You're_ friends with _our_ daughter?" the man asked in disbelief. "I had no idea that a girl like you would ever spend time with her."

"A girl like me?" the girl asked. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Someone who dresses so nicely and obviously has some manners."

"Mhmm," his wife agreed. "And quite lovely too. It's really a shame that she can't be more like you."

 _You don't know me,_ Regina wanted to say, but she kept her thoughts to herself and simply smiled, saying, "Thank you for saying so, but your daughter is a lovely young woman."

Both parents laughed loudly at this, causing the brunette's eyes to widen. Never before had she ever seen any parents talk about their daughter the way they were talking about Emma, and it made her stomach turn. Imagining her own parents talking about her that way made her feel ill, and even just hearing Emma's parents speak that way about her made Regina feel horrible. Rather than saying much else, she sat down in the chair in the corner of the room and watched as her parents laid into her about sneaking out of the house.

"I don't care if she's a lovely young woman," her mother scolded her. "You're not allowed out after eleven! You _know_ that, Emma! Why is this a constant battle with you? It serves you right that you got hit in the head! You're lucky it wasn't us!"

The blonde swallowed hard and nodded her head vigorously (even though it was excruciating to move). Finally, when they were done berating her, the two left the room and began to argue with each other as they slipped into the hallway. As soon as the door was closed, Regina stood up and approached the bed. To her surprise, as she drew closer, she saw tears on Emma's cheeks as the girl squeezed her eyes shut and gripped her hands into tight fists.

"Emma?" Regina said softly. "Are you okay?"

"I wish you hadn't called them," the blonde muttered, swallowing hard again.

"I… I'm sorry… I didn't realize…"

"It's fine," the blonde cut in, opening her eyes.

"You should really rest, while you can, now that the doctors are confident that you're stable. They will probably keep you here for most of the day tomorrow and wake you every few hours."

"What? What about school?"

"I think it's pretty clear that you recovering from a concussion is more important than some stupid classes you don't even care about."

"How do you know I don't care about them?"

"Because you sleep through them?" Regina laughed, shaking her head.

"How do you know I don't have narcalapsy or something?"

"It's 'narcolepsy,' Emma, and because you can't even say it right."

"You really are a fuckin' twatwaffle."

"And you're incredibly rude."

"That's true," Emma said slowly. "Hate to tell you this, but it's never really bitten me in the ass before, so why change now, right? Chicks dig cocky assholes, apparently, and that's all I really care about, so…"

"So all you care about is 'chicks?'"

"Well… I mean… No, but-"

"You're ridiculous. It's too bad that impact to the head didn't shake the bullshit out of you."

"Gee, thanks, Doc. Nice pep talk. Real inspirational."

"Were you looking for a pep talk?"

"No. Not really. I'm just looking to go the fuck home."

"Well, that's not happening until at least tomorrow, and that's only if you show no symptoms of getting worse."

"What?"

"If you continue to vomit and display confusion, they'll keep you here to make sure you heal properly."

"But I'm fine!"

"You were throwing up. That's a very serious symptom."

"I'm _fine!_ "

"Why is it so hard for you to admit that you can get hurt just like anyone else?"

"I'm not hurt! I'm… testing my armor."

"Oh, really?" the brunette laughed. "So you're a knight in shining armor, then, huh?"

"You wish," Emma chuckled. "Besides, only knights who've never had their valor tested have armor that shines. What you really want is a knight whose armor shows their victories in battle."

"I… I guess you're right…"

"Anyway, you should go. You've gotta be at school tomorrow, and you don't want to be a walking zombie like me when you get there."

"I'm not leaving you."

"Sorry… What?"

"I said, 'I'm not leaving you.'"

"But why?"

"Because you don't like hospitals, and I don't want your parents to give you more shit than they already have."

"You really shouldn't stay."

"I'm not leaving until you're discharged."

"They're gonna kick you out soon, anyway."

"I'll wait in the lobby."

"Regina, that's-"

"Shut up. Just _shut up_ and relax. Close your eyes and try to sleep. I'll stay until they kick me out, and I'll be here in the morning as soon as they let me back in."

"Why are you doing this? You hate me. I broke into your-"

Just then, the room door opened and her parents re-appeared with serious looking scowls on their faces.

"You are in so much trouble, young lady, and if you think we're covering this, you're-" her father started.

"No!" Emma cried. "No, I'll cover it. It's my fault. I'll use my savings. It's fine."

"Good. Now, we're going home to get some sleep, and we'll be back tomorrow afternoon to get you, as long as you're discharged on time."

"Thanks…"

"Try not to get into any more trouble while we're gone. And you'd better not be as rude to this young lady as you are to us," her mother cut in.

"Yes, ma'am. Understood."

"Good. You have a good night, Regina. Please be safe getting home tonight."

"I certainly will. Thank you very much."

With that – and without any 'I love you's – the two were gone, leaving Emma and Regina alone in the room once again.

"You don't have a savings, do you?" the brunette finally asked, when the silence grew too heavy.

"No. I don't."

"I'm glad it was me instead of some guy with a gun," Regina sighed. "You know they can kill you, right? For breaking in? You could've gotten shot."

"Yeah, whatever."

"Emma!"

"What?" the blonde snapped impatiently. "Are you gonna lecture me too, now?"

"Yes! Haven't you learned anything from this? _I_ could have killed you on accident! I hit you in the head! I could've caused permanent brain damage! You could've been paralyzed!"

"Oh, so that's why you're still here. You feel guilty. Well, you can shove that right up your ass, because I-"

"No. I feel _empathy._ It's not the same. I can put myself in your shoes and understand how awful you must feel right now. We might not get on, Emma, but that doesn't mean I want to see you hurt, or even worse, dead."

"You understand nothing about me."

"Alright, fine. Look, why don't we just-"

Again, they we interrupted by the door opening, as one of the nurses stepped in an announced, "Visiting hours are long since over, Miss. I'm afraid you'll have to let Miss Swan rest for the evening."

Regina shot the girl a quick, worried glance, and for a moment, she saw panic wash over Emma's face before the girl wiped it away and became stone-faced as she nodded her head. Before leaving, the brunette squeezed the girl's shoulder and looked into her eyes, silently telling her that everything would be alright.

Each time she was woken in the night, Emma panicked and broke into a sweat, startled by the doctors' entrances into the room. In the morning, though, Regina was there, as promised, sitting in the chair beside the bed.

"Hey," she said softly, offering the blonde a small smile. "How ya feeling?"

"Oh, my _God,_ it hurts," Emma groaned. "I feel like my head's exploding over and over again. It's like someone's setting off fireworks in my skull. I think I might actually be dying."

"You're not dying. I talked to the doctors, and they say you're doing just fine. No signs of permanent damage. You're gonna be okay. It's just probably going to hurt for a long time." When Emma looked skeptical, Regina added, "You're tough. You'll pull through this." Surprised at her words, Emma raised her eyebrows and remained silently, until the girl added, "Now you can tell everyone at school that you got into a bar fight."

The blonde laughed at this, saying, "Yeah. They'll buy that."

"I dunno. They might. You're pretty badass."

"What did you just say?"

"I just meant… I… You know. You're a tough guy. A-"

With a grin, Emma taunted, "You called me a badass."

"So what?"

"Do you like that in a woman, Miss Mills?"

Immediately blushing, Regina looked away and stood up, walking over to the window. She stared outside for a long time before Emma finally decided to speak again.

"So… Harvard, huh?"

"Yeah."

"Sounds nice."

"It's what my parents always wanted for me."

"What about you? What do you want?"

"I mean, I want it too. I just… Sometimes… I want… _more._ You know? Something exciting. I want… a _life._ Ugh… That's stupid. I-"

"No. I get it. That's why I do what I do. It's the thrill of it. It makes me feel alive when nothing else does."

"But it's dangerous. Extremely dangerous. Not to mention completely and utterly _wrong._ "

Regina looked over to scowl at the blonde and received a scowl in return.

"Don't be so judgemental. You sound like my parents."

"I… I'm sorry…"

"Nah. It's fine."

"No, really… I apologize. I didn't mean for it to come out that way. I just… You really should stop."

"Not likely."

"But _why_ , Emma? Why does it have to be this? Why can't you find a safe way to release your energy?"

"Because I… I don't know… I just… can't."

"What about white-water rafting?"

"Sorry?"

"My parents and I go white-water rafting every summer. It's awesome. Kind of dangerous too, but not if you've got the right equipment."

"It sounds expensive."

"I'd bring you. I'd be fun."

"No way."

"Why?"

"Because I'm not gonna be your fucking plus-one."

"That's not what I meant."

"What did you mean?"

"I was just offering to let you try a safer way of thrill-seeking, Emma! Jesus! Not everything has some alternate meaning or motive."

"I'm… sorry. I just thought…"

"Whatever. If you change your mind, the offer stands."

"I don't get you."

"Yeah, most people don't."

"Oh, don't be dramatic."

"It's true. Most people don't understand me or the lifestyle I live."

"Because most people don't have the kind of money you do."

"That's not-"

"Look, why are we even talking about this? Your life and mine are too different to ever align. You and I could never be friends. I'm nothing like you. I'm not 'lovely' or 'polite' or 'refined' or any of the other things my parents called you. I'm a no-good hood rat. I always will be."

"It doesn't have to be like that."

"Sure it does."

"Emma…"

"Just let it go, okay? Stop trying to help me."

"Fine," Regina snapped. "Stop being such a rude, pig-headed bitch, then."

"Fine."

Still, Regina stayed until Emma was discharged around three in the afternoon, as promised.

As she was leaving, she said, "Don't forget about our deal, Emma. It starts the day after graduation."

"Are you kidding me?" Emma gasped. "The day after graduation?"

"Yep."

"Ugh! That's not fair!"

"Bye, Emma! See you at school!" the brunette said, as cheerfully as possible, once her parents walked into the room. "It was lovely to meet you folks."

The blonde scowled at the girl as she left, channeling all the anger she could muster and sending it in her general direction. Still, the feeling dissipated quickly when her parents began to speak again.

"What's wrong with you?" the woman snapped. "Wipe that scowl off your face! What do you have to be upset about? That lovely girl made sure you got to the hospital and that we were contacted, which is more than you would have done on your own! Why can't you be more like her? Why do you have to be such a problem child?"

Though Emma wanted to scream, she stayed silent. She even fought back the frustrated tears that threatened to fall.

"Well?" her father pressed, when she stayed silent.

"I don't know," Emma said softly. "I guess I'm just a fuck-up."

Her parents said nothing. Instead, they waited quietly as the doctor entered the room, thankfully interrupting the lecture to give his patient one last check before clearing her for discharge from the hospital.

"I think you're gonna be alright, sweetheart," the doctor told her warmly. Turning to her parents, he said, "You're just going to want to wake her up every three or four hours to check on her and make sure she's still doing alright and that there are no signs of dizziness or confusion. If any symptoms begin to show again, please bring her back to the emergency room."

"Of course, doctor," the woman replied sweetly, faking a smile.

The girl's father nodded in agreement, then flashed his daughter the same fake smile that his wife had given the doctor.

"Well, that's it then!" the doctor said happily. "You're free to go. Take care, okay? Give it a day or two before you go back to school. I've already written you a note to give to the administration about your absence."

"Thank you," Emma told him sincerely. "I really appreciate it."

"And you're sure you're feeling alright?"

"It hurts like… heck," Emma said, catching the curse words before they left her mouth. "But I'm alright."

"I've prescribed you something for the pain, so you should be able to get through it. It won't hurt forever. Just try to stay away from the baseball bats, alright, kiddo?"

With a light chuckle, Emma nodded her head and slid out of the bed and into her jeans. Once she was dressed, she followed her parents out of the hospital and out to the car.

Almost as soon as they pulled into the driveway of their apartment building, Emma's phone buzzed in her pocket. When she pulled it out, she saw that the text was from Regina.

' **How you feeling?'**

' **Hurts like a motherfucker,'** Emma quickly texted back.

It was somewhat strange, but she was relieved to hear from the girl. No one had ever really bothered to check on her when she was hurt or ill before. Not even her parents had cared. But Regina… She was different. She was caring, and attentive, and… Well, she certainly wasn't sensitive or tactful, but she was definitely empathetic, and that was far more than any of Emma's acquaintances had ever been. She didn't really have anyone she could call a friend. There were kids she spent time with and got in trouble with, but none of them really cared about her, and she certainly didn't trust any of them.

For some reason, Emma trusted Regina. Even if she was a 'twatwaffle,' she was honest, and that was something Emma could appreciate and value.

' **Do you want me to bring you anything?'**

' **Nah, I'm ok. My parents don't really like having company anyway. Thanks though.'**

' **Maybe they just don't like the company you keep.'**

' **What's that supposed to mean?'**

' **It means they certainly seemed to like me. Maybe they wouldn't mind. Are you sure I can't come check on you?'**

' **You said you'd see me at school.'**

' **I know, but I'm worried your parents won't check on you tonight like they're supposed to.'**

' **Why would you say that?'**

' **Oh, come on, Emma.'**

' **Yeah, alright. It doesn't matter anyway. I'll be fine.'**

' **I'm coming over. If your parents send me away, that's fine, but I at least have to try. I really can't have your blood on my hands.'**

' **Haha. That's all you care about, eh? Don't wanna be guilty of manslaughter?'**

' **Nope. I really don't.'**

' **Alright. I'll see you soon.'**

When Regina appeared at the door, Emma's parents greeted her with surprise.

"Regina!" the woman exclaimed. "What are you doing here? It's late! You should be in bed!"

"I apologize for coming by so late-" it was only eight o'clock "-but I was really worried about Emma, and I wanted to see if she was alright."

"She's fine, dear. Nothing to worry about."

Nothing _they_ were going to worry about, anyway. Regina, on the other hand, was quite concerned for the girl's wellbeing.

"I'd really like to see her, if that's alright with you folks. I don't want to intrude, though."

"Oh, come on in," the man said with a warm smile. "She's in her room. You should probably stay the night, though. You shouldn't walk around in this neighborhood at night. There are some new spare toothbrushes under the sink in the bathroom."

"Thank you so much. I really appreciate it."

With that, Regina slipped past the couple and found her own way down the hall to Emma's room. The door was closed, so she knocked softly, startling Emma, who was beginning to fall asleep.

"Nnnng," the blonde mumbled, rolling over to face the door.

"Was that a 'Come in,' or 'I'm naked?'" Regina laughed, then waited for the reply.

"Come in," Emma finally managed. When the brunette stepped into the room, the girl looked up at her and smiled softly, saying, "I didn't think you'd really show up."

"Why not? Do I look like a liar to you?"

"No! No, that's… That's not what I meant. I just…"

"It's fine."

"No, listen. I've just never had anyone care enough to check on me before."

"Yeah, well… I almost killed you. I'm responsible if you die in your sleep."

"I'm not gonna die in my sleep," the blonde chuckled. "I was fine last night, wasn't I?"

"Were you?"

"Well… I mean, I threw up a few times, but I-"

"What?! And they discharged you?!"

"Regina, I'm _fine._ It was like four in the morning, and I didn't throw up again after that. The docs said I was fine."

With a sigh, Regina slowly approached the bed and looked down at the girl and absently reached out and touched her cheek, saying, "You look like shit."

"Gee, thanks."

"What are you really going to tell the kids at school?"

"That the other guy looks worse."

"Gee, thanks," Regina shot back, mocking her earlier response. "I mean, I know I'm not Marilyn Monroe, but I didn't think I fell from the ugly tree and hit every branch on the way down."

This earned a full-force laugh from the blonde, who sat up in bed and looked the other girl directly in the eyes.

When she finally managed to stop laughing, she said, "You've never been anywhere near an ugly tree in your life."

Regina had no idea what to say to this, so she simply stared with a blank look on her face and a blush on her cheeks.

"What?" Emma asked, sounding defensive.

"No one's ever said anything like that to me before."

"What? Really?"

"Well, no. They haven't."

"What about your boyfriend?"

"What boyfriend?"

Emma stared, her own face going blank, as she managed, "You… I mean… I thought you were with Robin."

"He's a friend," Regina replied with a shrug. "A lame one, but a friend. Well, more like a friendly acquaintance. Anyway, between you and I, he's with Killian."

"He's _gay?_ " the blonde shouted back, gaping.

"Yeah. So?"

"I dunno. He just acts like such a straight boy."

Regina laughed at this and shook her head, saying, "You don't really know him."

"Yeah, I guess not."

Before either one of them could say anything else, Emma fell back against her pillow and groaned, cursing out loud, and rolled away to face the window that the side of her bed was positioned against.

"Fuuuuck," she whimpered, reaching up to hold her head with her hands.

Feeling an intense wave of shame, Regina instinctually sat down beside the girl on her bed and put her hand on the blonde's back.

"Can I get you some ice?" she asked softly. "Is there anything I can do?"

"Ice would be wonderful, actually," Emma managed to reply.

Without another word, Regina hurried to the kitchen to fetch a Ziploc bag filled with ice and brought it back to the room.

Emma started to sit up when she re-entered the room, but Regina quickly ordered, "Lie back. Relax."

Emma wanted to protest, but the exhaustion was taking over, and the weight on her shoulders pushed her back down until her head was on the pillow. Once again, Regina sat down beside her, this time gently pressing the baggie of ice to the thin bandages wrapped around the girl's swollen temple.

When Emma hissed in pain, she said softly, "It's okay, Emma. This'll help. I promise. It'll numb it soon. Did you take your pain medication?"

"N-No… I… I forgot…"

"Where is it?"

"It's right behind you on the nightstand. There's a water bottle right there."

"Okay. Sit up just a little."

"Regina, you don't have to-"

"Sit up."

"Regina-"

"Sit. Up. Emma."

With an embarrassed blush – she wasn't used to taking orders – the girl sat up in bed and allowed Regina to lift the water bottle to her lips and tip it back slowly after handing her the correct dosage of medication. Emma swallowed quickly, then shook her head vigorously and gagged.

"God, that's _disgusting!_ " she cried. "Absolutely _vile_ tasting. It's like… It's like licking a horses bitter asshole."

"How in the hell would you know what a horses asshole tastes like?" Regina asked, trying not to burst out laughing.

"I get freaky on the weekends."

That was it. That was all Regina could take before exploding into laughter.

"Oh, my God. You're unbelievable," Regina choked through tears.

Emma grinned as she watched the unreserved joy spread over her companion's face. Listening to the sound of the beautiful girl's laugh and watching her smile, she felt butterflies fill her stomach for the first time.


	3. Chapter 3: Not My Nurse

By the time Regina finally stopped laughing, Emma was staring with a dumb smile on her face that would have been unmistakable to anyone else, but Regina was oblivious. She didn't notice the flash in the blonde's eyes, and she wrote off the warm color that had risen to Emma's cheeks as the result of her injury.

Finally, though, even though she didn't quite catch the sentiment behind it, she noticed the girl staring, and asked, "What?"

"N-Nothing," Emma muttered, leaning back against the pillows. "You should go."

"No way. I'm not leaving when I know they won't check on you."

"You're not my nurse."

"No, but I'm responsible for your injuries, and therefore, I should be responsible for your recovery."

"That's ridiculous. Like you said, I had it coming."

"Emma, I…"

"No, it's fine. Really. Go home and get some sleep. You've gotta be at school tomorrow."

"Actually, I was thinking of playing hooky."

"What? Seriously? Have you ever even done that in your entire life?"

"No, I haven't."

"Then why?"

"I dunno… I thought… I figured you'd probably want to sleep for most of the day, and if that's the case, someone needs to wake you up and-"

"Regina… Stop it. I'm fine. I'll be fine. Just go home."

"Are you saying that because you really just don't want me here? I mean, I know we don't exactly… click… but…"

"No… It's… It's not that. I just feel bad, you know? I don't want to be anybody's obligation."

"You're not an obligation. I'm _choosing_ to be here, because I'm responsible for hurting you, and I want you to heal well. Not because I have to."

"Are you sure?" Emma asked shyly, looking unsure.

"I'm sure. I'm gonna set my phone alarm for every three hours, and I'll check on you each time I wake. Do you have a spare blanket so I can crash on the floor?"

"No way. I'm sleeping on the floor. You get the bed. You're a guest!"

"Like hell you are! Your head is busted open!"

"You… You could just… I mean… If you're cool with it, you can… I mean…"

"Huh?"

"You could sleep in the bed. I don't kick or anything. I'll stay on my side, I swear."

"Emma, I-"

"I swear. Please. I _really_ don't want you to have to sleep on the floor."

"I don't _have_ to. I _want_ to."

"Yeah, yeah. Just get in the fucking bed, would you?" Emma quipped, scooting over towards the wall before grabbing Regina's wrist and tugging her down onto the bed.

The brunette looked surprised, but didn't move. Instead, she propped her head up with her hand and looked at Emma.

When she noticed that the bandage covering her wounds was red with blood, she said, "I should change your dressing. It's soaked already."

"It's fine. Leave it."

"Emma-"

"Leave it. I'm gonna try to sleep, okay?"

"Alright. I'll be right here if you need me. I'll give you your next dose of medicine when I wake you next."

"Regina…"

"Yeah?"

"Thank you. I mean… you're still a fuckin' twatwaffle. But you're really not so bad."

With a wink, Emma rolled over onto her side, facing away from the beautiful brunette beside her, and fell asleep.

Regina, though she'd set her alarms for every three hours, got next to no sleep at all, and kept watch over Emma's fitful sleep the entire night, giving the girl her medication when it was time and changing the dressing of her wound around one in the morning, when the blood started to trickle down her cheek.

In the morning, Emma woke with her head resting on Regina's shoulder. The brunette, too reluctant to move the girl, was frozen in place, and very much awake. When the blonde stirred, though, Regina's heart skipped a beat. Still, she was too anxious to move away.

"Oh, shit," Emma mumbled, reaching up to hold her head. "Sorry. I… I didn't… I didn't mean to…"

"It's fine," Regina said quickly, trying to brush off the awkward moment as quickly as humanly possible. "Just glad you're waking up okay."

"Yeah, I'm fine. You shouldn't worry so much. It's gonna give you gray hair."

"I'm going to look _terrible_ with gray hair," Regina chuckled, looking over into Emma's eyes as the girl sat up.

"You couldn't looked terrible if you tried."

Wide-eyed, Regina began to stare at the blonde, whose expression was serious and without any signs of joking.

Eventually, Emma added, "Anyway, you should get to school soon, or you're gonna be late for class."

"I'm not going. I already texted my parents to let them know, and they're going to call me out."

"Seriously?"

"I told them a friend was in the hospital and that they needed me, and they were fine with it. They trust me."

"You really don't have to-"

"Shut up, idiot. Just let me."

Emma sighed, but made no effort to retort.

Over the next two days, Emma mostly slept, but in between small naps during the day, Regina kept her company, and they took turns talking about themselves. In fact, they found themselves sharing things they hadn't before, to the point where both began to feel vulnerable and slightly exposed.

"Tell me something else about you," Regina requested.

"I, um…" Emma started.

"What?"

"I fancy girls…"

"Noooo," Regina said sarcastically. "Ya think?" Emma's eyes went wide, so the brunette added, "You're a total flirt. You're not exactly subtle about it either."

"I dunno. People usually freak about it when I say it out loud."

"What do your parents think?"

"They think it's disgusting."

There was a long pause where Regina felt her heart ache, but eventually, she managed, "It's not disgusting." When Emma didn't reply to this, she said, "Mine don't know."

Emma stared blankly, obviously shocked by the girl's second statement. _She's gay?_ the blonde was thinking. _There's no fucking way._ But she'd heard correctly, and Regina looked more than sincere.

"W-Why don't you tell them?"

"They'd skin me alive, I imagine."

"Oh, wow."

"At least they don't treat me the way your parents treat you. It's horrible, really… the way they talk to you. About you."

"Nah," Emma countered with a shrug. "They're right. I'm pretty much scum."

"You're a teenager. Just because you get into trouble doesn't make you scum."

"Sure it does. And they don't even know the half of it. I've never been caught breaking in anywhere. Stealing from stores a few times, but never breaking and entering. They'd probably kill me."

"Then maybe they should pay more attention to you and give you the affection you need."

"Whoa, there, buddy. I don't need 'affection.' I need to win the lottery and get the fuck out of this hell hole."

Not really knowing exactly what to say to this, Regina shrugged her shoulders and replied, "Being rich isn't all it's cracked up to be."

"Maybe so, but at least you're not hungry."

"You're eighteen, right?" Regina asked, knowing that they were both seniors in school.

"Yeah…. So?"

"So why don't you just move out then? I mean, you've got two jobs. You could probably manage it, right?"

"Well, I don't know… I mean…"

"Just a thought."

"Anyway… Let's… not… talk about me… anymore…"

"Alright," Regina agreed. "We can talk about whatever you want to."

"How about we talk about you. Tell me something about you."

"You should probably get some more sleep. You've been awake for a few hours now."

"You trying to shut me up? Am I really that annoying?"

"No," the brunette chuckled. "You just need your rest, and I don't know what to say about me."

"What's your favorite Disney movie?"

"Snow White, hands down. It's the ultimate classic."

"Alright. Fair. But what about Hercules?"

"Do you have any idea how inaccurate that mythology is?"

"Uh… Yeah? So?"

"So, it's ridiculous."

"It's not ridiculous. It's cute and funny."

"Alright, whatever. I mean, I guess the pony is alright."

"His name is Pegasus."

"Oh, my God. Pegasus. Whatever."

Emma laughed as her companion rolled her eyes, then asked, "So what am I actually going to be doing at your place over the summer? Like… mowing the lawn or…?"

"The lawn, the gardens… Whatever my parents need to keep the property tidy and healthy. They're pretty serious about the foliage."

"Geez. Alright."

"So you're coming around about it then?"

"No."

"Well, whatever. You're doing it anyway."

"I don't want to be in debt to you. Just let me come up with the money on my own, okay?"

"I'm not going to accept money that doesn't rightfully belong to you."

"Oh, my God. For Chissakes, Regina. What does it matter where the money comes from?"

"It's not about the money."

"What?"

"If the money was the issue, I wouldn't care where it came from. I don't give a shit about the money."

"Then what is it about?"

"It's about you doing something constructive with your time."

"What are you? My fucking mother?"

"Hey. Relax," Regina said softly, touching the girl's shoulder. "It's not like that. I care, okay? I especially care about you continuing this dangerous behavior and getting hurt as a result of it."

"But why?"

"Because, even though you're a twatwaffle, you're not such a bad kid after all, and I don't believe for a second that you're the 'no-good hood rat' you say you are."

"But I am a-"

"Emma," the brunette sighed. "Please."

"Please _what?_ "

"Please, just give it a rest! You agreed to do this, and now you need to follow through on your word. I didn't tell your parents what happened, and now you have to live up to your side of the deal."

"Fine. Whatever," Emma whined. "Anyway, you should really go. Your parents are going to-"

"My parents are fine, Emma. I'm not worried about them. I'm worried about you. Stop telling me to leave unless you really don't want me around."

"Stop worrying about me! I'm fine!"

"You're not fine. You're in pain."

"I've been sleeping fine, haven't I? So what if I'm in pain?"

"Speaking of that, you should let me ice it for you again. It's been a few hours."

"I'm not a child. I can do it myself."

"Oh, shut up. Just lay down, and I'll be right back."

Once again, Regina left and returned with a packet of ice, which she gently held against the side of Emma's head while the girl whined about how cold it was, until finally, the pain began to numb.

"Better?" Regina asked with a small smile, seeing that Emma had finally relaxed against the pillows. When Emma nodded, she said, "Good," and ruffled the girl's hair very lightly.

"Hey," the blonde whined. "I'm not a dog."

"Nah, but you're cute and cuddly like one."

Emma's face flooded with color as she dropped her gaze to her hands, which were folded in her lap.

"I…" Regina started. "I just meant…"

In a burst of forced courage, Emma looked up and teased, "Uh-huh. Sure. I know exactly what you meant."

"No! I just… I was just…"

"I'm just kidding," the girl laughed, nudging her companion's shoulder with a crooked smile. "I know you were just talking."

"I… Yeah."

"Anyway, you're probably right. I should sleep."

"Your head feels alright? Do you want me to ice it some more?"

"Regina! I'm not a baby!"

"I'm just concerned, okay? I want to be helpful. I feel really bad for hurting you."

"You shouldn't. I broke into your house. I was totally going to steal from you, if you'd been anybody else."

"You wouldn't have broken in if you knew it was my house?"

"Nah," Emma replied with a shrug. "I don't hit houses of people I know. It's just a bad plan."

"The whole thing is a bad plan!"

"Give it a break, Regina! You're not going to magically change me overnight! It's just who I am. It's what I do."

"It doesn't have to be."

"Fuck it. I'm going to sleep."

Grabbing the bag of ice and holding it to her head, Emma rolled over onto her side and shut her eyes. As the brunette sat watching her, she sighed and thought about their conversation. Clearly, Emma was unwilling to change. Regina was even beginning to grow concerned that the girl would go back on her word. Still, she saw something in Emma that intrigued her, and it was difficult to ignore. Something more than guilt was drawing her to the young blonde, and though she couldn't explain what it was, it was undeniable. With another sigh, Regina laid down beside the girl and shut her eyes as well.

"Goodnight, Emma," she said softly.

Emma mumbled an inaudible response and squirmed a little beneath the sheets. All Regina could think was, _God, that was cute,_ before quickly falling asleep herself.

The next morning, Emma felt much better. In fact, she was so tired of lying in bed that she nearly jumped out from under the sheets to get in the shower.

"Are you sure you should-" Regina tried, but Emma was already half-way out the bedroom door.

She returned from her shower in only a towel, walking back into the room casually and thinking nothing of the amount of skin she was revealing. Of course, this was difficult for Regina to ignore, given the girl's toned, muscular figure.

"Um… What?" the blonde asked as she turned around and noticed the other girl staring.

"Huh? Nothing! I…"

After blinking a few times in disbelief, Emma stated, matter-of-factly, "You're staring."

"No, I'm not! I was… Um… I was just…"

Of course, rather than realizing that Regina was unintentionally checking out her increased amount of visible skin, Emma felt as though she was probably being judged for having a less-than-exceptional body (which quite obviously wasn't true).

"It's cool. I know I'm not exactly-"

"Wait, Emma, no! I didn't… I wasn't…"

"It's fine, Regina. I'm sure you've seen plenty of people who are… well… a great deal less hideous than me, half-naked."

"Excuse me?"

"No, I didn't mean like… I just meant… I just meant that I know I'm not the best to look at. I should've gotten dressed in there. I didn't think about it, and I apologize."

"You're being absolutely ridiculous, Emma Swan."

"What do you mean?" the blonde asked, tightening her towel around her body as she looked apprehensively at the girl sitting on her bed.

"You're… You're not… You're…" When Emma simply blinked at her and stared back, Regina finally finished, "You're beautiful, Emma. I don't know why you'd say that."

"I'm… not… Wait… What?"

"Oh, shut up, Emma. Just get ready for school and let's go. I'm going to go take a shower, if that's alright."

"Um… I… Of course…"

But she was still recovering from Regina's previous comment about her physical appearance. As soon as the girl left the room, Emma got dressed and dried her hair, then packed her bag. When it came time to re-bandage her wound, she grew frustrated and threw the bandages down on her desk. The brunette walked in at the exact moment this happened and let out a soft sigh as she stepped up beside the exasperated girl. Her wound did look better – far less swollen and bloody – but it was definitely still noticeable.

"I got it," Regina told her, carefully reaching out and picking up the bandages off the desk.

Emma wanted to protest, but by the time she opened her mouth, Regina was already working to dress her wound.

"I look ridiculous," the girl sighed, looking in the mirror. "People are totally going to laugh at me."

"Remember what you said to me the other day?"

"Uh… no."

"The other guy looks worse, right?"

When Regina offered a small smile, Emma gave her one in return.

"Alright, kid," the brunette said cheerfully. "Let's go."

By the end of the school day, Emma had received more than five text messages from Regina, asking how she was and how her head was feeling. Of course, she felt like shit, and her head hurt like a bitch, but she assured the girl that she was fine.

' **If you need to go home, you should go,'** Regina told her, but Emma pushed through the rest of the afternoon, until the final school bell rang and the two met by the blonde's locker.

"How ya feelin', champ?" the brunette asked casually, leaning up against the metal locker.

"I'm fine. Got some serious shit from the guys today, but I'm fine."

"Don't listen to them. We both know the truth. The other guy looks worse, right?"

When Regina winked at her, Emma blushed and nearly dropped her books.

"So, anyway…" the dark-eyed girl began. "I guess you're doing a lot better now, then…"

"Yeah," Emma agreed. "It still hurts like a bitch, but I'm not gonna die. No blood on your hands. Well, except the stuff that already got on them the night you _nearly_ killed me. Other than that, you're clean."

It was Emma's turn to wink and Regina's turn to blush.

"I really am sorry…"

"You seem to be alternating between feeling guilt and being pissed that I… well…" The girl stopped and looked around, making sure no one could overhear their conversation, then continued, "That I broke in to your place and was pretty much gonna rob you."

"What were you even looking for, when you came upstairs? I mean, there was plenty of stuff downstairs you could have taken. The silver… The electronics… Anything."

"People keep their most valuable stuff in the bedroom, I've learned. That's probably where you keep your jewelry, yeah?" Regina paused, then nodded her head before Emma added, "There ya go, then. Probably plenty of diamonds in that massive jewelry box of yours."

"Oh, come on, Emma. It's just stuff. It doesn't matter to me. If you really want my jewelry, you can have it. Most of it means nothing to me, except a few small things that belonged to my mother when she was young."

"I… I don't… It's not…"

"I can't say that I get it… I wish I could, but I really just don't. All I can say is that I hope you eventually learn your lesson and that you learn it without getting hurt again."

"Doubtful," the blonde said, suddenly flashing a mischievous grin.

"Ugh," Regina groaned. 'You're impossible."

Emma opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. All she could think to say was, _And you're beautiful._ It was an odd sort of impulse that she'd never felt before. Thinking those words about _Regina Mills,_ of all people, was especially confusing (and surprising). She wasn't quite sure how to process the thoughts, so she simply said nothing.

"You alright there, champ?" Regina finally asked. "Did I finally hit a nerve?"

"Nah," the girl quickly answered. "I'm fine. You didn't hit anything, except my head."

Regina looked flustered and guilty, at least until Emma began to smile. Then, a smile spread across her own lips in return. Finding herself somewhat staring at the girl, Regina attempted to tear her gaze away, but it landed on the blonde's bandaged wound. There was a small bit of red seeping through the white bandage, and when the more serious girl noticed it, her facial expression fell.

"Emma," she said softly. "You need to change your bandage."

"Huh? Why? Is it gross?"

"No, it's not gross, but it is a little bloody… I can't believe you're still bleeding after all this time…"

"Aw, it's fine. I'm fine. It's just a little bit. Probably just from me rubbing it."

"You did _what?_ "

"It was itchy!"

"Emma!"

"What?"

"You can't mess with it! You need to let it heal!"

"Yes, _mom,_ " Emma scoffed, rolling her eyes. "Whatever you say."

"God, woman! I'm never going to understand you!"

Regina was obviously flustered, so Emma stepped closer, mostly without thinking, and put her hand on the girl's shoulder, saying, "I know. But I'm okay. Really. You shouldn't worry so much. I'll take my meds when I get home, and I'll be fine. As you know, they knock me right out."

"You didn't take them today?!"

"Of course not! You think I'd be able to stay awake in class hopped up on that shit?"

"Well, no, but I… I don't want you to be in pain. You should have stayed home."

"I'm _fine,_ Regina. Relax. I'll take them when I get home and pass out for a while. The doc actually said I could take less after a few days anyway, so I'm actually probably going to try that and see how it goes."

"Why don't you just-"

"Regina. Please, just chill. You're stressing me out."

The blonde laughed, but her companion remained serious, scolding her, "This isn't funny. You could-"

"Hush. I'm fine."

"Can I go home with you?"

"Sorry… What?"

"I mean… I just meant… You know… To make sure you're okay. And that-"

"I'm fine, Regina! Jesus Christ! Are you this neurotic with everyone?"

"Only with people I've nearly killed."

"And how many people might that be, exactly?"

"Uh… One? One and a half?"

Again, Emma laughed, shaking her head. As the girl's golden curls bounced around her shoulders and down her back, Regina began to stare again. Sure, she was rough around the edges, but _damn_ was she good-looking. This wasn't a thought Regina wanted to entertain, though. In fact, she pushed it so far from her mind that it came back with a vengeance a few moments later and resulted in the brunette's lips parting as she subtly wet them with her tongue.

"What?" Emma finally asked, blinking a few times.

"Huh? Nothing. I… It's nothing. I just… I'm worried about you is all."

"Can you really stand to spend any more time with me?" the blonde chuckled. "I'm not so sure I can handle another dose of your sass."

"Sass?"

"Oh, yes. You're _full_ of sass. That's _exactly_ the word I'd use."

"Well, that's just ridiculous. I'm merely honest and-"

"At any rate, are you serious?"

"Well, yes. I wouldn't have asked if I wasn't."

"Alright. I'll call my parents."


	4. Chapter 4: Affection

"So, what do you do with your free time?" Regina asked casually as they walked into Emma's room together. "I mean, other than…"

"That's pretty much it, really. Everything else just bores me. Except video games. I like video games."

"Yeah?"

"Mhmm. Grand Theft Auto for the win!"

"Isn't that… like… all about stealing cars, killing cops, and beating up hookers?"

"Something like that," the blonde replied with a grin.

"That's… just… barbaric."

"Oh, yeah?"

"Yeah."

"Well… I like it. So…"

"You actually enjoy stealing cars, killing cops, and beating up hookers?"

"Well, sort of. I mean, I don't beat up the hookers."

"What do you do with them then?"

"What do you mean what do I do with hookers? What does anyone do with hookers?"

"Oh… Oh, gosh. That's… You do that in the game?"

"I do that in real life too," Emma shot back, winking at the horrified brunette. "What else would I spend all my money on? Certainly not food."

"Emma…"

"I'm just playing. Relax, would you? It's a good thing I don't actually own a console. That way, you won't have to watch me play."

"How do you play then?"

"I play at Will Scarlet's house sometimes. He hooks me up."

"Sounds like a drug deal," Regina chuckled, sitting down on her companion's bed.

"It kind of is."

"What…?"

"I'm just kidding. God, you're so uptight! I don't do drugs."

"Neither do I."

"Have you ever?"

"No."

"Neither have I. Everyone says I'm lame because of it, but they pretty much get over it when I bring home a handful of diamonds to pawn."

"Emma…"

"What? At least I'm not _totally_ lame."

"And I am?"

"No. You're cool in a different way. You're popular. I'm just in with a niche crowd."

"I'm not popular…"

"Yeah, you're right. I only saw you stop and talk to seven or eight people walking down the hallway to my locker."

"Oh, come on, Emma. They're not real friends. They're acquaintances."

"Well, you sure as hell have a lot of them. I've got a handful, but they're a miserable lot and definitely not loyal."

"I could say that about my acquaintances as well."

"But you're different?"

"I didn't say that, but yes. I'd like to think I'm loyal and honest, whereas the kids I know… They're not… exactly… nice people…"

"Then why do you spend time with them?"

"I'm spending time with you right now."

"What does that even mean?"

"It means don't worry about who I spend my time with or why. I'm here with you now, and that's what matters."

"That's hella gay, man."

"Oh, for Chrissakes, Emma. You're impossible."

"You said that once today already," Emma retorted with a grin.

"Shut up. You're such a little punk."

"Yeah, well… You're a prissy little Barbie."

"Whoa! What the hell, Emma?! That's bologna!"

"Bologna? I'm just kidding, Regina. Jesus."

The blonde's face fell as she looked away, but Regina's softened from one of irritation into one of playful amusement as she saw the look that appeared on Emma's face.

"I think you just said that because you felt the need to come back with something."

"Of course I did!" the other girl cried. "You insulted me!"

"Well, it's kind of true. You are sort of a punk. And not the alternative kind. You start fights, you break into houses, you-"

"Hey. Don't judge my lifestyle, okay?"

"You judge mine, and you don't even know me."

"You don't know me either!"

"I know a hell of a lot more about you than you know about me."

This hit Emma hard, and she was silent as she stood in the middle of the room, watching the girl who was sitting on her bed with a sudden look of seriousness. What was she supposed to say to that? With a sigh, she shook her head and approached the bed, sitting down beside Regina and staring down into her own lap.

"I'm sorry. You're right. I know very little about you, and I shouldn't judge. I don't mean to. I just…"

"You just?"

"It doesn't matter," Emma sighed. "But… I would like to know more about you… I'd like to get to know you better."

After blinking a few times in confusion, Regina replied, "Why?"

"Well… Because… Because you're… intriguing, I guess. I'm very… interested. In your life, I mean. In who you are."

"That… doesn't make sense… You said we were nothing alike and that-"

"I know what I said. The point is… You… You kind of amaze me, with how much you care. And honestly… I know it's not just your guilt that's bringing you here. It's not just about you feeling bad about what happened. I can tell that you actually _care_ about what happens to me, and I've never felt that from anyone before. It confuses me, and I feel very… conflicted about it… so… I'm interested in what's made you the way you are, and why you feel what you do."

After the long-winded explanation, Emma immediately felt a wave of embarrassment that brightened the color of her cheeks as she kept her gaze down. Obviously, she couldn't really take back what she'd said, and there was certainly no explaining it away. She was going to have to live with the truth of her words, and the fact that her companion unfortunately had heard them. Regina, upon hearing this explanation, was left completely in awe of both the fact that Emma had shared her thoughts with honesty and the fact that she clearly felt so deeply about what she'd said.

"I…" the brunette started, her mouth hanging open just slightly. "I'm… I'm not sure what to say to that. No one's ever really be interested in who I am as a person before. They just… care about… my family's money. And my looks, apparently, if they're guys."

Emma couldn't help but laugh at this as she replied, "It's not just guys who care about your looks, honey."

Regina stared at her, not comprehending the message the blonde was trying to send.

"I don't get it," she finally confessed. "What does that even mean?"

"It means that you're beautiful, and it's not just the guys who notice."

"Well, it would be lovely if a _woman_ would notice now and again," Regina said, rolling her eyes. "Unfortunately, it's all sloppy, cheesy, one-track-mind boys who seem to be interested, and… Wait, what?"

"What do you mean 'what?'"

"What you just said."

"What about it?"

"What… Why did you say that?"

"Because it's true, obviously. You're gorgeous, Regina, and everyone knows it."

An involuntary sigh escaped the blonde's lips as she lifted her eyes from her lap and began to stare at the wall, her brow furrowing in frustration.

All Regina could come up with for a reply was, "That's a silly thing to say."

"It's really not," Emma protested firmly.

"Alright, fine. Let's pretend, for just a moment, that your outrageous claims are true. Why have I _never_ been asked out by a woman?"

"Well, firstly, you hang out with a bunch of _girls,_ not _women._ Secondly, perhaps it's because you're _too_ beautiful, and that makes you a bit intimidating. You're also incredibly popular and wealthy, which is also intimidating. Maybe the women, unlike the boys, are scared to put themselves out there and make themselves vulnerable to you when they don't feel worthy."

"What do you mean by 'worthy?' What do you mean by any of that? You're not really making any sense."

"I don't know how to make it any more clear. You are beautiful, popular, and wealthy. Women find this intimidating and are scared to pursue you. Also, most women are self-conscious, and probably would feel like you're out of their league. Which would be true for most of them."

"Oh, my God, Emma. Just say it straight out. You're making me feel like a dunce.""

"I mean that you _are_ out of the league of most women. You're not just beautiful and popular and wealthy. You're smart, and you're kind, and you're caring. I don't know anyone good enough to deserve someone like you."

"I…" Regina started, her mouth hanging open once more. "I'm… That's… That's an incredible compliment, Emma…"

"Well, it wasn't intended to be. I was being honest. You asked me a question, and I answered it."

"I didn't ask you to call me beautiful, or kind, or caring, or smart. But you did."

"Yes, I did."

Regina bit her lip and looked at Emma, who was finally daring to look back at her, even though her cheeks were pink.

"You're embarrassed," Regina blurted, suddenly having the realization that this was true.

"No, I'm not!" Emma shouted back, a little louder than she'd intended. "I… Why would I be?"

"I don't know," the brunette lied, reaching out and tucking a piece of Emma's hair behind her ear. "Why would you be?"

 _Oh, my God,_ Emma's mind raced. _Is she fucking flirting with me?_ But when Regina dropped her hand to her side once again, the blonde immediately told herself, _No way,_ and nearly shook her head in response to her own thoughts.

"I'm not," she ended up repeating, the lie nearly causing her to choke on her words.

"Alright. Anyway, we should probably do some homework, huh?"

"Ha-ha. Yeah, right. Like that's happening. You feel free to use my desk, but I ain't doin' shit for any of those classes."

"Emma, come on. Just do the freakin' homework already. It's not going to kill you."

"Like you almost did?"

"Stop it!"

"I'm not doing it, okay? Just drop it. Do your own homework and keep your nose out of mine."

"How are you even graduating without doing the work? I mean, honestly."

"I'm not," Emma said shortly, quickly looking away towards the window.

"Oh, shit… I'm… I'm sorry… I didn't realize… I thought…"

"It's fine. You shouldn't be sorry for my lack of effort. I honestly just don't give a shit."

"You should, though. Don't you want to get out of this god-forsaken school already?"

"I do, but it's not happening this year. It's too late. I don't even know why I bother showing up to class."

"Well…" Regina started slowly. "Think of it this way: the more material you soak up in class now, the first time you're doing it, the easier it'll be the second time around."

The blonde blinked a few times before answering, "You're kinda right, I guess. I probably should do the work…"

"What if… What if I help you? I mean, there's only another week left of school, but I can help you study for your exams. It'll make next year a lot easier if we review what you've done in class this semester."

"Regina… No. You need to focus on your own shit. You're actually going to a good school next year, and your grades matter."

With a sigh, the girl reached over and put her hand on top of Emma's, saying, "I'd be happy to help, if you'd let me."

"Well… I dunno. I mean, I let you help with my head… I should probably let you help with my defective brain too."

"Your brain isn't defective, Emma," Regina laughed. "You just don't give a shit."

"True, true. Anyway, you do your homework first, and I'll see how far I can get with mine."

"Alright."

It wasn't long before Emma gave up on her share of the homework, but luckily, it didn't take Regina long to finish hers. They spent the next hour working on Emma's math problems before Regina started to notice the girl getting uncomfortable and beginning to fidget.

"What's the matter?" she asked, looking into Emma's eyes as she watched her companion's brow furrow in frustration.

"I don't get this, and my head hurts. Inside _and_ out."

"Did you take your meds?"

"You think I'd be able to hold a coherent conversation for this long if I'd taken my meds?"

"Emma! You said you'd take them!"

"They're gonna make me pass out, or if I take a lower dose, they're gonna make me all silly and stupid."

"It's getting late anyway," the brunette tried to reason with her. "Just take them. I don't want you to be in pain."

"No pain, no gain, princess."

"What exactly are you trying to gain?"

"I dunno. Life experience?"

"Hilarious. Seriously. Take your meds."

"Fine. But I'm not ready to sleep yet, so I'm taking a lower dose."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure."

Twenty minutes or so later, Emma was laying down on the bed, rather than sitting, and laughing at the way Regina held her pencil.

"Oh, my _God,_ " Emma howled. "You hold it like it's a small child that you're scared to break. It's so dainty. Like a princess!"

"Jesus, Emma. You weren't kidding. I mean, I know pain meds make people loopy, but it's really not that funny…"

"You know what's funny?"

"The way you smile."

"What the hell! What's wrong with how I smile?"

"No, no, no, no, no. I mean _funny._ As in… as in…" Emma tried, but forgot the word she wanted to use. When she finally found it, after seeing the look of annoyance on Regina's face, she said, "As in, it's funny how amazing it is."

The brunette's eyes went wide as she stared at Emma, whose head was on her pillow.

"You need to sleep," she said shortly, once she finally collected herself enough to respond.

"But I don't _wanna_ sleep."

Rolling her eyes, probably for the hundredth time that day, Regina reached over on Emma's nightstand and grabbed the pill bottle, then opened it and tapped the bottom until one pill fell into her hand. She held it out to Emma and waited.

"What? Why?"

"You're acting ridiculous and saying things you don't mean, and it's late, and I know you're still hurting because you keep touching the bandage and squinting every few seconds."

"Well, it _hurts,_ " Emma pouted, reaching up to rub the swollen spot on her head. "I can't help it."

"Just take the meds and get some sleep, champ. I'll see you at school tomorrow."

"Alright," the blonde sighed heavily, taking the pill from her companion. "I'll see you tomorrow." Just as Regina stood up to leave, though, she added, "Hey Regina?"

"Hmm?"

"Thanks for coming over and helping me with stuff. I'm pretty much useless on my own."

"Yeah, you are," the girl replied, winking in Emma's direction. "But you're also very lucky."

"Why's that?"

"'Cause you're growing on me."

With that, Regina grabbed her bag and left the room, leaving Emma to wonder exactly what she'd meant.

The next morning, Emma found the girl's notebook open on her desk. As she looked at it, she marveled at the neatness of Regina's handwriting, and the perfect organization of her notes. Everything was color-coded with highlighters and different colored pens. It was sort of an academic masterpiece, the blonde was thinking. _Not fair,_ she whined silently. _Why can't I be that smart?_ But she was quickly cheered up – she wasn't sure why – by the realization that having the girl's notebook meant she would have to see her before homeroom that day, rather than waiting until after school.

She met Regina at her locker and held the notebook out to the girl with a smile, saying, "You have very pretty handwriting."

"Emma! Hi!" Regina cried, taking the book from Emma's hand. "I was wondering what I'd done with that! Thank you so much for bringing it to me. It's got all my notes for history and English in it."

"Well, I'm happy to help," the blonde replied, still wearing a broad, sly smile. "Thanks again for last night. Sorry I got so dumb and loopy. Told ya that would happen."

"It's fine... You just… needed some rest…"

When she heard the pauses between the brunette's words, Emma asked, "What? Did I do something weird that I don't remember?"

"No… I mean… you said… some stuff…"

"What stuff?!"

"Nothing. It's nothing. You should get to class. I'll see you later, okay?"

"Yeah… Okay."

With that, Emma turned and walked away.

That afternoon, the two met in the hallway after their classes to discuss their plan for studying and homework. After deciding collectively to meet at Emma's house again – Emma wasn't exactly comfortable being in the house she'd broken into – they took the bus back to her place and set up their work at Emma's desk.

After about fifteen minutes of Regina lecturing Emma about the math terms 'sine,' 'cosine,' and 'tangent,' the girl dropped her head onto the desk and reached into her bag. Pulling out a small bag of dark chocolates, she groaned and unwrapped one, then popped it in her mouth. With a scowl, Regina quickly grabbed the bag and tore it away from the unfocused student.

"Pay attention," the brunette scolded. "You've only got six more problems left."

"Hey, man! Give me back my chocolates or I'm gonna go ape-shit on you!"

"You get one piece for every problem we get through."

"What am I? Five?"

"You're not five. You're unfocused and unmotivated, which I completely understand. But you need to get through this. You said you wanted my help."

"I do! I just… I'm…" Emma started, then rubbed the front of her head. "Dammit, man. Shouldn't have done that. I'm gonna get some serious permanent brain damage if I'm not careful."

"Exactly. Now finish the problem."

"I don't know hooowww," the girl whined. "Can't you just do my homework for me? I'll share my chocolates!"

"Oh, come on, Emma. You wanted my help, and if you really didn't care about learning the material, you just wouldn't do the homework at all."

"That's true. Alright. Show me how to do this one, and I'll do the rest."

"Good deal. Now hush up and listen so we can get through this."

After the first problem Emma completed on her own, Regina handed her a single piece of chocolate, saying a simple, "Nice work."

Emma shrugged her shoulders, popped the chocolate into her mouth, and stared down at the page.

After a while, she asked, "How about two for every problem I get right?"

"I don't understand your diet. Honestly. Chocolate, but nothing with real sustenance?"

Again, the blonde shrugged, then picked up her pencil again. She got half-way through the problem before asking Regina for help. Five pieces of chocolate later, they'd managed to work through the rest of Emma's math homework.

"Well done," Regina told her with an encouraging smile. "I'm proud of you."

Rolling her eyes, the student pushed the textbook away until it fell off the side of her desk. Emma laughed when it hit the floor with a bang.

"Emma!" the brunette cried, exasperated by the girl's attitude. "For crying out loud!"

"Aw, c'mon, Gina. It's just a book."

"Gina…?"

Regina looked both confused and horrified by the new use of a nickname.

"What?"

"You called me 'Gina.'"

"Oh… Um… Well… Is that… bad or something?"

"No one calls me 'Gina.'"

"I think it's cute."

"It's not cute!"

"It is, but anyway, thank you for helping me get through this. I actually learned a lot more from you than I learned from Mrs. Silver."

"That's because you sleep through her class."

"Yeah, whatever. The point is, you were _very_ helpful, and I appreciate it. Even if you did withhold my chocolate."

With a triumphant grin, Emma snatched the bag away and popped another piece slowly into her mouth. Without meaning to, Regina began to stare as she watched the girl slide the chocolate between her lips.

"What?" the blonde asked, as soon as she'd finished eating it. "You want a piece?"

She didn't think much of it as she unwrapped a piece and held her hand out, hovering the chocolate in front of the girl's lips, but Regina's eyes went wide as she watched Emma's fingertips.

"Try it! It's good," Emma promised.

With a small blush, Regina parted her lips slightly and allowed the girl to carefully place the piece of chocolate in her mouth.

"Oh, no shit," Regina sighed happily as she finished eating it. "That _is_ some good chocolate."

"It's just Dove. It's crap, really. It's just cheaper than the good stuff."

"I never eat candy or chocolate. My parents don't like it."

"Do you always do what your parents like and avoid what they don't?"

"Pretty much, yeah."

"Alright, well… Maybe you should make an exception for chocolate."

"I think I probably will from here on out."

The girls smiled at each other before sharing a few more pieces of the chocolate and finishing the small bag.

"So you ready for graduation?" Emma finally asked, once they were sitting empty-handed in silence.

"Not at all," Regina laughed in response. "But I'm definitely ready for summer. You?"

"Definitely not excited for summer _at all._ "

"What? Why? No classes, no homework… Sun, heat…"

"Yard work for you, apparently."

"Oh, come on. It won't be so bad."

"Do you know how many better things I could be doing?"

"Like what? Stealing from shops and breaking into people's houses?"

"Yeah. Exactly that."

"You're such a little punk," the brunette chuckled.

This time, though, the statement had no frustration or anger in it. It contained something else that Emma couldn't quite recognize: affection.


	5. Chapter 5: First Day on the Job

"You know," Emma's father started as the family sat around the kitchen table a few days later. "You could have graduated yesterday."

"Oh, give it a rest," the girl groaned, rolling her eyes and pouring the store-brand cereal into her bowl.

"Your father's right," her mother chimed in. "If you were more like Regina, you'd be going to college in the fall like everyone else in your class."

"Not everyone else in my class is going to college."

"Well, most of them are," the woman retorted.

"And _you're_ certainly not," her father snapped. "Why can't you be more like other kids your age?"

"Other kids my age are into drinking and doing drugs."

"And you're not?"

"No! Of course I'm not!"

"Well, at least you haven't fucked _that_ up!"

"Dad, come on! It's not like I _tried_ to fail out!"

"Well you certainly didn't try not to!"

"Come on! Can't you guys just give me a fucking break?"

"You know what, Emma? You need to go find something productive to do with your life."

"You know what? Fine. Like two jobs isn't enough. I'll go find something to do that isn't staying in this fucking house with you two."

With that, Emma nearly threw her seat backwards and stormed out of the house, only taking the time to quickly grab her phone and wallet.

Luckily, she had plans to meet Regina at her place anyway. Unfortunately, those plans included meeting the girl's parents, which Emma was _not_ excited to do.

When she arrived at the Mills residence, for the first time since she'd broken in, the smell of baked goods wafted out of the front door as soon as it was opened.

"Hey!" Regina greeted her cheerfully. "Come on in! I just made cupcakes!"

Blinking a few times before entering, Emma stepped through the doorway and into the house. She was welcomed by an even stronger scent of baking as the brunette led her into the kitchen.

"Want one?" the girl offered happily, holding out a chocolate cupcake with chocolate frosting.

"I thought your parents didn't let you have sweets?"

"They said I could as a treat for having graduated…"

"Oh, awesome! Yeah, uh… Sorry I didn't go… I mean… I wanted to… I just…"

"What?"

"I just felt pretty shitty about it, you know?"

"Yeah, I get that. I mean why did you _want_ to go, though."

"Huh? Oh. Well, to support you, obviously. You should be proud of your accomplishment."

"Wow, Emma… Thank you. That's… That's a really sweet thing to say."

The blonde smiled slightly and shrugged her shoulders.

"It's true. I'm sure your parents are very proud of you too."

"Well… It was expected of me. They don't really see it as an accomplishment. They're happy I lived up to their expectations, though."

"That's good. Where are they, anyway?"

"They're upstairs. They'll be down in a bit. Anyway, you want a cupcake or what?"

Regina smiled broadly as she handed over the baked treat, and Emma ate it slowly, but was obviously enjoying it thoroughly as she sat down on the stool at the kitchen counter.

"How was it?" Regina asked, after the girl had finished the large cupcake in three bites.

"That was _excellent_ ," Emma told her, licking her lips. As the blonde's tongue passed over her pink lips, the other girl stared until finally, she asked, "What?"

"N-Nothing," the brunette answered quickly. "I should show you the gardens."

"Yeah… I guess so."

"Oh, come on. Don't whine. I fed you, now let's go."

With a scowl, Emma followed the girl outside. What she hadn't seen in the dark the night she'd broken in was the back yard, which was not only massive, but also beautiful and full of foliage, including a large apple tree.

"Wow," the girl breathed, staring around at all the green vegetation surrounding her. "It's beautiful."

"It needs work. Grass needs to be mowed, tree needs to be tended to, bushes need to be cut back… Plenty of stuff to clean up."

Shoving her hands into the pockets of her denim shorts, the blonde grumbled, "I think it's fine how it is."

"You just don't want to do any work."

"How am I supposed to manage this _and_ two other jobs?"

"I figure two mornings or afternoons a week should be plenty to keep the place neat and tidy."

"Ugh. If you say so."

"I say so."

"Alright, fine. What do you want done first then?"

"Well, the grass is getting kind of long…"

"Alright. Where's the lawn mower?"

"It's in the garage. I'll show you."

So the two walked around to the front of the house where Regina opened the garage door. After showing Emma where the gas can was located, the blonde filled the push-mower's tank and wheeled it outside.

"Wish me luck," she said with a sly smile as she started the machine.

Regina smiled back and nodded her head, saying, "Good luck."

An hour and a half later, the grass of the front and back lawn was cut neatly.

"You guys got a weed-whacker?" she asked Regina, who was sitting at the kitchen table in front of a pile of paperwork, as she stepped back inside. "Hey… What are you doing, anyway? I thought you graduated."

"Huh?"

"What's with all the paperwork?"

"It's college stuff. Information about enrolling for classes and freshmen orientation."

"Oh. Gross. Anyway… Weed-whacker?"

"Wow. Really going above and beyond, are we?"

"I do a good job at the things I do, when I want to."

"And why would you want to?"

"Because you care about this place, and I care about you, so… therefore… I'm going to do a good job."

With a smile, Regina replied, "Good. Thank you, Emma. The weed-whacker is actually right next to the gas can in the garage."

"Oh. Must've missed it when I was out there. Thanks."

Forty minutes after that, Emma returned to the kitchen sweating and covered in grass and dirt, this time with her hair pulled back out of her face as sweat dripped down her cheeks. Her tank top was soaked with sweat.

"I, um… Do you…" Regina started, but caught herself blatantly staring at the girl in front of her.

"What?" Emma questioned, tilting her head slightly in confusion as she looked at the brunette.

"Did… Do… Um…"

"Regina?"

"A drink!" Regina blurted out. "Gosh. I meant to ask if you wanted a drink."

"I'd love some water, actually, if that's okay."

"Of course it's okay! Oh, my gosh. I'm so sorry. Hold on a second."

Regina hurried to the fridge and took out a water bottle, handing it immediately over to Emma, who took a swig from it gratefully. When Emma lifted her chin to down the liquid and the brunette watched the few small beads of sweat drip down the girl's neck, her mouth began to water.

 _Oh, God,_ she groaned silently. _Stop fucking staring._ But this seemed impossible, and by the time Emma's attention came back to her, she was still looking directly at the blonde.

"Dude, what?"

"Nothing! Nothing. I just… I don't want you to _over_ work yourself, okay? If you need a rest, just sit down."

"I'm fine," Emma chuckled. "I'm not an invalid just because I suffered a head injury."

"Listen… Emma… Maybe this was a bad idea. You look like you're gonna faint, and I-"

"Hey, no way. I'm not backing out of this. I gave you my word. I might hate it, but I'm not wimping out now. Besides, you need the help."

"You know my parents could hire anyone to do this job."

"Well, no one's gonna do it with as much love and care as I am."

Regina's eyes went wide as she watched the blonde's expression and found sincerity there. Before she could respond, though, her parents appeared in the doorway to the kitchen.

"Good afternoon, girls," her father said brightly. "Pleasure to meet you, Emma. I just took a peek out the window, and the yard looks great already. You've done a lovely job. Our gardener last year was quite a disappointment, I'm afraid."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Emma said truthfully. "I hope I can live up to your expectations and that I can get your gardens looking as best as they can. I'm happy to do anything to help your daughter and anyone in her family."

The girl's mother's eyes went wide at this, and her father looked well beyond impressed.

"Well, now," Regina's mother said. "That's quite the statement."

"I mean every word."

"You must enjoy yard work, then."

"Not at all, Mrs. Mills. But I enjoy supporting the people I care about, and I take pride in my work."

"We heard you didn't graduate this year," the girl's father cut in slowly.

His tone wasn't judgemental, but it made Emma blush anyway. She shot Regina a nervous glance before looking back to the man with an expression of guilt on her face.

"I have never considered school to be a priority for me. Some people, like your daughter, are _very_ academically gifted. Unfortunately, I'm not one of those people, and I chose instead to pursue the things that I am good at and play to my strengths."

"And what might those be, young lady?"

"I'm strong. I'm determined. I'm very exact in whatever I do. I take great care to complete tasks well. Cura et celeritas, I always say."

"Cura et celeritas," Regina's mother repeated back to her. "'Accuracy and speed' in Latin, I believe."

"Yes, ma'am."

Regina was completely floored by this, but she certainly couldn't argue with Emma's words. What the girl put her mind to, she succeeded at (except that one time she tried to break into the Mills residence, thinking no one was at home).

"I think that's a wonderful motto to live by, young lady, and I think that playing to your strengths, as you say, is a wonderful strategy. You're right. Not everyone is cut out for the academic life, and there is nothing wrong with that. The world needs people who can work with their hands or use their brains for other tasks too. That's where determined, hard-working people like you come in, I think."

"I'd like to believe so, Mrs. Mills."

"Well, you certainly are a pretty one," Mr. Mills cut in abruptly, offering the girl a genuine smile.

"Oh, gosh… I… Thank you, sir."

"She is, isn't she, Regina?" Mrs. Mills asked her daughter.

"I… Um…"

"Isn't she?"

"She very much is, yes."

At this, Emma turned bright red and avoided the gaze of everyone in the room, turning her attention to her shoelaces.

"Well, it was a pleasure to meet you, Miss Swan," Henry Mills told the blonde. "Thank you very much for your willingness to help us, and our daughter."

"I appreciate that you've given me the opportunity to be of assistance."

"Where'd you find this one, Regina?" the girl's father laughed, nudging Regina's shoulder. "She's pretty _and_ polite, unlike your other friends."

"They're not really friends…" the brunette retorted. "I just hang out with them."

"Whatever you call them," Mr. Mills said, "they're a rotten lot, and this young lady seems quite the opposite."

The girls were both tempted to laugh at the irony of this statement. Emma might have been more polite to Regina's parents and more hard working than some of the girl's other friends, but she certainly didn't know how to stay out of trouble. Or if she did, she definitely chose not to.

"I appreciate you saying so, sir," Emma told the man with a genuine smile. "I do what I can."

"Well, we'll leave you girls to it, then. We have some business down at the bank. Have a great day, ladies."

With that, the girl's parents were gone.

"That was... interesting," Regina commented, not hiding the smirk that was growing over her lips.

"What?"

"You _are_ polite."

"Only around parents," Emma laughed. "Never around my peers."

"Ah, I see. That explains a lot then, since you called me a twatwaffle."

"No, that was just me being honest."

Both girls laughed at this, and Regina gave Emma's shoulder a playful shove before turning to open the refrigerator and pull out another bottle of water for herself.

"What would you like me to do next?" Emma asked as Regina took a graceful sip from the bottle.

"I think that's plenty for today, hun," the girl replied with a smile. "You worked really hard today."

 _Hun?_ Emma was thinking, caught slightly off guard by the term of endearment.

"You're surprised," she finally said.

"Well… Sort of. I guess that's because of your lack of motivation in school. But I can tell that what you put your mind to, you give your all. That's a beautiful thing, Emma."

With a shrug, the blonde looked around the house, saying, "It's really nice in here. It was kind of hard to notice the elegance of everything in the dark."

Chuckling, Regina replied, "Glad you think so, 'cause you're stuck here for another eight weeks."

"Ugh," Emma laughed. "You're brutal."

"You have no idea."

The brunette winked and gave Emma's shoulder another playful shove.

"Alright, well… I'm gonna get going then…"

"You don't have to leave, you know. We could just hang out and watch a movie or something… You seem pretty stressed out. I'm gonna go ahead and guess there's some tension at home?"

"Well… Yeah... Lots, as a matter of fact."

"Stay and chill then."

"You sure? I mean, you really don't have to-"

"No, it's cool. Like I said, you're growing on me."

"If you're absolutely certain I'm not imposing…"

"You're not. I'm bored anyway. Besides, if you weren't here, I'd probably just be up in my room eating all these cupcakes by myself."

Emma laughed at this and told her, "Nothin' wrong with that."

Grinning, Regina grabbed the girl's wrist and tugged her into the living room where they both sat down on the couch and turned on the television.

"What do you want to watch?" the brunette asked, looking over at her guest.

"Whatever you want. I'm not picky. I also don't really watch a lot of TV. Anything you want to put on is fine with me."

"Alright… Well, what about Animal Planet?"

"I love animals!"

However, as soon as Regina turned the channel to the desired station, the narrator of the program began to talk about the mating patterns of giraffes, and both girls made a disgusted face in unison.

"Gross, man!" Emma cried, covering her eyes. "Absolutely nasty!"

"It's just nature, Emma," Regina laughed, but was also looking away from the television screen.

"Yeah, but it's yucky. I dunno why they think it's okay to film that shit. Haven't they ever heard of privacy?"

"Guess not," the brunette agreed. "I've never really thought about it that way."

"Well, if it were humans, it wouldn't just be profanity. It would be an invasion of privacy, if they didn't know they were being filmed. Also… totally illegal."

"True."

"Anyway, what else is there on?"

"History Channel?"

"Damn, girl. You're pretty boring, aren't you?"

"You said I could put on whatever I wanted!"

"I'm just kidding! Jeesh. I don't mind the History Channel. I actually kind of like it, especially when they talk about World War I and II stuff."

"Really?" Regina asked with a look of curiosity.

"Mhmm. I'm not a _total_ dunce. I just hate school and homework."

"Fair enough."

As luck would have it, when Regina flipped the channel, there was a special about World War II on, and the two of them were instantly engrossed in the program. After about an hour had passed in silence, Regina finally looked over at Emma and decided to speak.

"You good? How's your head?"

"Yeah. I'm alright. It's fine. Still hurts… but I'm fine."

"Can I get you some ice? The exertion from all that work today probably didn't help anything."

"Nah. I'm good. Really."

Biting her lip, the brunette said, "Okay... If you're sure."

"I'm sure. Don't worry so much."

"Can't help it."

"So do your parents know what happened?"

"They know I hit you in the head and that you ended up in the hospital, but they don't know that you broke in."

"Thank you…"

"For what?"

"For not telling them."

"Why would I have?"

"I dunno. 'Cause you hate me?"

"Emma. I don't hate you. You wouldn't be here right now if I hated you."

"You did."

"That's not true. We just didn't get on. We're very different people. There's nothing wrong with that, though, and like I said… you're kinda growing on me."

With those words spoken, Regina nudged Emma's shoulder with her own.

"Hey," the girl protested. "Why do you keep doing that?"

"It's a gesture of affection."

"What?"

"N-Nothing… Anyway, there's two more hours of this. You wanna keep watching?"

"Do you?"

"Totally."

"Good deal," Emma told her with a grin. "I'm in."

"Want me to make some popcorn on the next break?"

"I… You don't have to do-"

"Will you eat it if I make it?"

"Yeah…"

"Alright then."

During the next commercial, Regina did exactly that, returning with a large bowl of the snack, which was covered in butter, and holding a saltshaker.

"Salt?" she asked.

When Emma nodded, she sprinkled a little over the popcorn, then handed the enormous bowl to the blonde.

"Thanks, Regina."

As Emma stared down at the bowl, unmoving, the brunette said, "Well, don't just stare at it, dummy. Eat it."

Smiling and feeling slightly embarrassed, Emma grabbed a handful of the snack and popped it into her mouth, chewing as quietly and carefully as possible, which was contrary to her usual eating habits.

"Is it okay?"

"It's great, Gina. Thank you. Seriously."

"You were hungry, huh? All that work must have made you starving." With a shy nod, Emma swallowed another mouthful before Regina added, "You don't eat enough."

"I eat plenty."

"Of chocolate," the dark-haired beauty laughed.

Emma scowled and shot back, "That's food."

"Chocolate isn't food. It's candy."

"It's not candy. Chocolate is its own category, and it _is_ food."

"Yeah, whatever."

"Hey, shh! It's back on!"

So both girls went silent as they snacked on the butter-covered treat and became engrossed in the program once again.

Just as it ended, Regina's parents opened the front door and entered the residence, calling out, "Hey, girls! We're home!"

"Hey!" Regina called back. "We're in the living room!"

When her parents appeared in the room, Emma waved at them with a small smile.

"I see you guys made a snack," the girl's mother commented, gesturing to the bowl of popcorn, which was now only half full.

"Mhmm," the young brunette answered. "That okay?"

"That's fine, dear, but… you should really eat something more substantial. Especially you, Emma! After all that work, you must be starving."

"Oh, I… I'm… I'm just fine, Mrs. Mills."

"Oh, nonsense. You should absolutely stay for dinner."

"I really couldn't… I… My parents…"

"Her parents won't mind," Regina cut in, grinning at the blonde. "She'd love to stay for dinner. Isn't that right, Emma?"

Emma, blushing, nodded her head and said, "That would be lovely. Thank you. I really appreciate the invitation."

"What are we having?" the brunette asked.

"Lasagna. Your favorite, sweetheart," her father replied.

"Awesome! Thanks, guys!"

"We'll have it ready in about an hour, if that sounds alright to you. Why don't you two go upstairs and play?"

"Play?" Regina laughed. "We're not five, mum."

"Oh, you know what I meant. Whatever you girls do nowadays, at your age."

"Okay. Cool. Let us know when it's time to wash up."

"Will do, darling," the man said, walking over and kissing the top of his daughter's head. "We love you, dear."

The girl's mother nodded as Emma and Regina stood up from the couch, then made their way up the stairs to Regina's bedroom.

"You've got a lot of books," Emma commented as she looked around the room.

"I like to read."

"I do too, but I get all mine from the library."

"You like to read?" the brunette asked in surprise.

"Don't sound so shocked. Just because I hate school doesn't mean I don't like to read."

"Alright, then. What do you want to do?"

"What books do you have?"

As Regina listed some of them off, Emma's eyes widened. The list contained works such as _American Psycho_ and _Fight Club,_ which surprised her greatly. It didn't seem like Regina to read those types of stories, but they happened to be some of Emma's favorite books.

"You wanna read?"

"You mean together?"

"No. Like, at the same time. My brain's too melted to come up with any intelligent conversation, and I don't want to make an ass of myself."

With a chuckle, Regina nodded her head and grabbed _The Catcher in the Rye_ off her bookshelf, then turned to her guest and asked, "Which one do you want?"

"Fight club?"

"Good choice."

When Regina positioned herself on one half of the queen sized bed, Emma looked at her apprehensively.

"What?" the girl asked, glancing over at the blonde.

"I dunno…"

When she made a move to sit at the girl's desk, Regina quickly said, "No way. It's way more comfortable on the bed."

"But I-"

"You fell asleep and put your head on my shoulder for half the night. I think we're past laying on a bed together."

"Good point," Emma laughed, then climbed onto the bed, laying on her stomach beside her companion and propping herself up on her elbows as she opened the book to the first page. To her surprise, though, Regina opened the book towards the middle, so she asked, "You're not gonna start at the beginning?"

"Nah. I like the part where Holden's pretending to get shot. Probably my favorite passage in all of American literature."

"Guess that makes sense."

The two shared a smile before glancing down at the ink on the pages of their books and beginning to read. Forty-five minutes later, the girl's mother called up the stairs and announced that dinner was ready, so they each put down their novels and washed up for the meal.

When dinner was over and Emma said her goodbyes, Regina walked her to the door.

"Goodnight, Emma," she said softly. "Thank you so much for your help today."

"No problem. Wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Anyway, I'll see you Tuesday?"

"Sounds good."

"I can be here early, but I've gotta work at two."

"No problem. See you then!"

Regina couldn't stop herself from watching the girl leave as she noticed her toned body, including the slight curve of her waist and the tight muscles of her thighs. Not to mention her backside. Luckily, Emma didn't turn around before walking away.


	6. Chapter 6: Cavities

**Author's Note: TRIGGER WARNING: Mentions of unwanted sexual advances.**

* * *

As it would turn out, Emma would hear from the brunette before the upcoming Tuesday. In fact, it was Monday morning that the girl texted her.

'Emma…' the first text read.

'What's up, hun?'

'My mom set me up for a date with some guy tonight. He lives a few towns over and is homeschooled. He's the son of some wealthy guy she works with.'

'Oh, damn. You tell 'em to piss off?'

'Of course not! They're my parents! And if they find out that I'm gay, I'm totally fucked.'

'Well, how else are you gonna get out of it?'

'I don't know. I'm freaking out right now. What do I do?'

'You could just tell them and get it over with. They're going to find out eventually anyway.'

'Emma! Not helpful! There's no way that's happening!'

'Alright. I'm sorry. Maybe you should just go and spend a few minutes with him, then tell him you're not interested and that it was your parents who set up the date.'

'But my parents… they expect me to do this.'

'So go. Just blow him off when you do and tell them he was a complete and total ass.'

'They've already met him and said he was "an upstanding gentleman."'

'Oh. Damn.'

'Emma HELP.'

'It's gonna be fine, love. Especially if he is an upstanding gentleman. He'll understand that you're not interested, and it'll be fine.'

Regina blushed as she read the message. _Love._ Her heart skipped a beat before she replied to the text.

'Maybe you're right. Anyway, I gotta go. Thank you for listening. I'm sorry I'm being such a whiner right now. I guess I'm just scared and wicked nervous and grossed out.'

'Hey, who knows? Maybe he'll be your prince charming and you'll fall in love with him tonight ;)'

'Hilarious. I'm gay, Emma. Meaning I'm not interested in men, regardless of how chivalrous they are.'

'Just trying to be optimistic. Anyway, in all seriousness, I wish you the best of luck tonight. Call me if you need anything.'

'Thank you… You're too sweet. Really.'

'Nah. Anyway, try to have fun at least. Maybe he's gay and doesn't want to date you either haha.'

'Hopefully that's the case! Wish me luck.'

Emma didn't expect the girl to call, especially after it had reached eleven in the evening and she hadn't heard from her. At 11:13, though, her phone rang, waking her from the sleep she'd just fallen into.

"Hey," she muttered sleepily into the receiver. "What's up, babe?"

"Emma," Regina sobbed. "It was fucking horrible. He… He… We had dinner, and then… He wanted me to go back to his place… I tried calling my parents to ask, assuming they'd say no, but my mom said it was fine and I couldn't get out of it, and then… He… He started…"

"What is it, honey?" Emma asked anxiously, sitting straight up in bed. "What happened?"

"He touched me… and I told him to stop, but he wouldn't… and he… I had to hit him to get him to stop… I had to hit him so many times before he let go of me, and I…"

"Oh, fuck… Did he… Did…"

"No. I ran out of there like a bat out of hell. I… I'm walking home now."

"Fuck, Regina! You're walking?! It's almost midnight!"

"I didn't have a choice. It's not like I could've asked him for a ride!"

"Oh, God. I'm so sorry, Gina. How close are you to my place?"

"I'm on the other side of town. I'm half way to my house already. I'll be okay… I just… I needed… I…"

"I'm coming over. I'll meet you at your place. Walk fast and keep your cell phone on you."

"Emma… You don't-"

"I'm not letting you be alone right now."

"Thank you… Thank you _so much._ I'll see you soon."

"Regina?"

"Yeah?"

"Be careful."

"I will."

"Good. See you in a few."

By the time Regina arrived at her house, Emma was waiting for her, sitting on the front steps. As soon as she saw the girl, the blonde rose to her feet and ran to her. Once she was close enough, she pulled the brunette into her arms and held her there as the girl began to cry again.

"It's okay. I've got you. And I'm going to fucking kill him."

"Emma… It's fine. You don't-"

"No," the blonde snapped, holding her at arm's length and looking into her eyes with piercing seriousness. "It's not fine. And I'm going. To fucking. Kill him."

"Emma…"

"Let's get you inside," the blonde said suddenly, finally pulling away. "You're gonna need a nice cold beer and some rest."

"A what?!"

Emma leaned over and picked up two bottles of Sam Adams Summer Ale from the steps and held them up with a sly smile.

"Never fails to help me relax when I'm freaking out."

"You shouldn't use alcohol to cope with your problems!"

"Oh, come on. I don't smoke. I don't do drugs. Let me have a little fun, would ya? And it's not gonna kill you to join in."

"I don't drink."

"Probably because you never have before."

"Well… I…"

"Hey, listen… Let's go upstairs, and you can take a sip, and if you hate it, I'll drink it."

"You shouldn't drink. You're underage."

"I'm eighteen."

"And the drinking age in the United States is twenty-one."

"Oh, hush. Don't be so uptight, Barbie."

What had become a term of endearment brought a small smile to Regina's lips as she wiped her tears on the backs of her hands.

"Alright. Come on in."

So the girl unlocked the front door and led Emma upstairs. As the two sat down on her bed and Emma opened the first bottle, she looked at it apprehensively.

"Some people thinks it's gross," Emma told her. "But some people love it. Give it a try? Just taste it?"

"Alright… Maybe just a taste…"

So Regina took the bottle and tilted it back, allowing a small amount of the beverage to pour over her tongue.

"Actually…" she said, lowering the bottle. "That's not half bad. Sort of sweet… Sort of bitter… I didn't expect it to taste like that."

"Well it's certainly not Pabst Blue Ribbon, that's for sure," the blonde laughed. "Doesn't taste like horse piss like that shit does."

"That's what I usually hear from girls about beer. Most of my friends drink hard liquor like Captain Morgan rum or vodka."

"But you never have?"

"My parents would kill me if they found out."

"Don't worry. I'll bring the bottles with me when I leave," Emma told her with a wink.

Regina rolled her eyes and took the other bottle and the metal bottle opener, then popped the top off and knocked back the beer, taking a larger gulp.

"Whoa there, kiddo," her companion chuckled. "That it easy."

"Why bother?" Regina sighed. "Might as well get plastered."

"Well, you're sure as shit not gonna get plastered on one beer. It's just to help you relax a little."

"And I sure as hell do need to relax right now. God, that was… so fucked up…"

"You gonna tell your parents?"

"Yeah. I am."

"I'm surprised."

"I'm usually very open with them. They're very understanding about pretty much everything. I just know they'd take the gay thing and freak the fuck out about it."

"Speaking of that… Are your parents gonna be pissed when they find out I was here?"

"No."

"You sure?"

"Yeah. They love you. You made a very good impression."

"I tried."

After the two had each finished their beverages, Emma looked over and Regina with concern in her eyes as she saw the wave of sadness wash over the girl's face.

"You alright?" she asked softly, subconsciously putting her hand on the brunette's thigh.

Regina looked down at the girl's hand and began to stare at it. She couldn't help but wonder at the softness of the girl's skin as she thought back to the night that Emma had fallen asleep with the skin of their arms pressed together and the girl's head on her shoulder.

Eventually, after forgetting to answer for some time, she looked up and asked, "Huh?"

"I asked if you were alright… but it's obvious you're not. What can I do?"

"I… You could…"

"What is it? Anything you ask, I'll do."

The brunette's lips parted slightly as she stared at the blonde. Emma's words had shocked her.

"No one's ever said anything like that to me before…"

"I mean it. Anything I can do to help, I will."

"Would you… Would you stay tonight?"

"Of… Of course I will, Regina. The only way I'd leave you right now is if you asked me to. Even then, I wouldn't want to. I'm so worried about you, and I'm so, so sorry this happened."

"I'm just glad he didn't… you know…"

"Me too. You're a tough cookie, apparently. I wouldn't wanna mess with you. You'd kick me in the balls and I'd collapse and cry like a baby, I'm sure. Or you'd just hit me in the head with a metal baseball bat and nearly kill me."

Regina burst into a fit of laughter at this, a little louder than she'd intended, then covered her mouth to stop the sound. Instinctively, and without intention, Emma reached up and gently pulled the girl's hand away to uncover the noise.

"Don't," she said softly with a slight smile. "I like it when you laugh."

"I'm… I'm gonna wake my parents," the brunette chucked. "Then they _would_ be pissed."

But even though Regina had spoken nonchalantly, she was still caught up in the web that Emma's words were weaving around her. The blonde certainly knew how to stop her breath in her chest.

"I think it'd be worth it if I got to hear that again." When Emma realized what she'd said, and that she was unintentionally flirting, she blushed and looked away, muttering, "Sorry… I meant…"

When the brunette placed her hand on top of Emma's and said, "It's fine. Let's get some sleep, hun," the blonde blushed brighter, but nodded her head.

"You could use some rest, I think. You feelin' that buzz?"

"After one beer?" the girl laughed, shaking her head.

"You totally are."

"Yeah… I am."

Both of them laughed at this, before Regina stood and walked over to her dresser, pulling out a T-shirt and a pair of comfortable shorts, then throwing some at her guest. Once they were both changed – Regina had to fight the urge to turn around as Emma slipped out of her clothes – the two climbed under the sheets of Regina's bed and rested their heads on the pillows. Emma stayed awake for a while, but Regina fell asleep almost instantly. As soon as she did, she rolled over, facing Emma, and rested her head on the girl's shoulder, causing the blonde to blush once again as her cheek brushed the top of her head. As Regina breathed deeply, Emma sighed and finally shut her eyes.

Regina's head was still on her shoulder when she woke the next morning. Once she had, she got dressed in the previous night's clothes – she'd changed before she'd gone to meet Regina at her house – and slipped out of the bedroom door and downstairs. Without eating – she was too embarrassed to help herself to anything – she immediately went outside and began work on the garden.

When Regina finally appeared outside on the lawn an hour or so later, she looked exhausted and melancholy (which Emma didn't blame her for at all). The blonde waved at the girl with a small smile, and Regina waved back with a bit less enthusiasm, then sat down in a lawn chair in the middle of the grassy area behind the house. Emma was turned around, so she didn't notice the girl staring at her as she knelt in front of the center garden and began to pull out all the weeds that were mixed in among the beautiful flowers. After she was done, she collected the hose and began to water the area.

Eventually, the brunette whined, "Fuck. It's _so hot._ "

Emma immediately grinned, turned around, and looked Regina in the eyes.

"Yeah?" she asked playfully.

"Yeah. Aren't you dying?"

Of course, Emma was. In fact, she was dripping sweat from head to toe. But she was currently too distracted by the relatively skimpy clothing the other girl was wearing to answer her.

"Well?" Regina pressed. "I'm _dying_ right now."

"I think I've got an idea," Emma finally said, grinning mischievously.

"What… What are you talking about?" the brunette asked cautiously, giving Emma the once-over.

But the gardener had no intentions of responding with words. Instead, she covered the opening of the hose with her thumb half-way and lifted it until it was spraying the girl's torso.

"EMMA!" Regina screamed, jumping out of the chair and covering her chest. "I'M WEARING WHITE, YOU FUCKING BITCH!"

But the blonde had seen exactly that before the display had been covered. She hadn't really planned for that to happen. In fact, she hadn't really registered that the brunette was wearing white at all. Now that she'd already completed the action, though, she had no regrets. However, she was frozen still as she stared at the girl's soaked figure. Everything from the neck down was dripping.

"I, uh…" she finally managed, gaping at the sight.

Rage (and possibly amusement) blinding her to her inhibitions, Regina dove at the girl, tackling her to the ground, straddling her hips, and prying the hose from her hands. As soon as she had it secured, she poured the water directly over Emma's face, until the blonde was coughing, laughing, and shaking her head vigorously to escape the flow of water.

"Hey, hey, hey!" she choked. "Knock it off! You win, you win!"

But Regina wasn't finished. Instead of stopping, as requested, she lowered the hose slightly until it was soaking Emma's white, tightly fitting tank top.

"REGINA!" Emma laughed loudly, trying to push the girl away.

But the brunette squeezed her thighs together to keep her position pinning the gardener to the ground, unrelenting as she splashed the water all the way down to Emma's navel. Of course, this exposed Emma completely as the fabric stuck to her skin, and her face turned red as she squirmed beneath her captor.

"Gina, come on!" she whined, desperate to escape the stimulating sensation of Regina's thighs gripping her tightly.

"Hold fucking still, Barbie! Don't be such a baby!" Emma's tormentor only stopped when she was completely soaked from head to waist, then announced triumphantly, "Payback's a bitch."

The blonde, exasperated, collapsed back on the grass, laughing loudly as she shut her eyes and pushed her dripping locks of hair out of her face.

"Oooh, girl, you are _mean,_ " she told her companion.

"You don't know the half of it," Regina said, leaning in until their chests were pressed together and her full lips hovered over Emma's.

Completely shocked by this, Emma stared up into chocolate eyes as her heart raced. Just as Regina leaned in a little closer, her breath caught in her chest, but the girl pulled away instantly with a wicked, taunting grin.

"I'm going inside to dry off," she said, standing up and turning around.

As she walked away, Emma could have sworn there was an extra sultry swing to her hips. While she lay on the ground, drying off in the sun, she shut her eyes and pictured the girl's soaking frame and the way the water had coated her skin. Before she knew it, she was growing even warmer than the sun was already making her.

"You want lunch?" Regina called out, breaking Emma from her trance several minutes later.

"Huh?" Emma asked, sitting up straight.

"Jesus, Emma. I thought we hired you to do work, not just lay around."

With a wink, the girl disappeared into the house once again. Fully dried off by the sun's rays at that point, Emma stood and followed Regina inside. When she reached the kitchen, there was already a tray of a few different sandwiches waiting for her.

"Didn't know which kind you'd like," the brunette told her, "so I just sort of fixed a bunch of them."

"Damn. Wish you'd told me you were gonna make lunch."

"Why?"

"'Cause then I could've said, 'Make me a sandwich, bitch.'"

Emma laughed, but Regina just scowled at her and shoved her backwards by the shoulders. As Emma stumbled into the counter, she continued to laugh, so the brunette advanced on her until their bodies were nearly pressed together.

"I'd shut up if I were you," Regina warned, her face suddenly serious.

"Oooh, fierce Regina. I like it. What are you gonna do? Shut me up?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?"

With that, Regina grabbed two sandwiches off the tray and made her way into the living room. Once again following her, Emma grabbed her own two sandwiches – roast beef and turkey – then sat down beside the girl on the couch, still a little bewildered by the brunette's behavior.

 _Was she flirting with me?_ Emma wondered. It certainly felt like it. _Why else would she get that close to me?_ But her questions went unanswered as the girl turned on the TV and flipped to the History Channel. They both silently watched the program – a random show about how heavy, industrial chain links are made – until forty minutes had passed and Emma finally decided to speak.

"I gotta go to work," she sighed, reaching for Regina's plate with the intention of bringing it back into the kitchen.

"Can't you call out?" the girl asked suddenly, looking up at Emma as she stood from her seat.

"What? Why?"

"I… I don't know. I just… meant…"

"Do you want me to?"

"N-No, I…"

"I wish I could, hun, but I really need the money."

"I know… I just…"

"You can come by tonight if you want. I'm out at nine-thirty, so I should be home by nine-forty-five."

"That would be great. I really don't feel like being alone right now, you know?"

"Oh! Oh… I… I didn't realize that was what you meant. I really am sorry that I can't call out tonight. If I could, I would. I just… I've gotta pay my phone bill, and-"

"No, I get it. I do. I just still feel really weird."

"I'll see you tonight, though, okay? A little more than eight hours from now."

"Alright. Have a good day at work, okay?"

"Ehhh. I'll try."

With a wink, Emma patted the girl's shoulder, then turned and left for work.

When Regina arrived at Emma's apartment that night, she was soaked. This time, not from a hose, but from the rain.

"Did you walk?!" Emma asked anxiously, grabbing the girl's wrists and pulling her inside.

"Yeah, so?"

"So, you're soaked! Come inside and change."

"I didn't bring a-"

"I've got plenty of clothes, Regina. Just come here."

"I'm fine, Emma. Really."

"I said _come here,_ " the blonde snapped, tugging the girl up the stairs and into her small bedroom, where she began to dig through her dresser drawers for suitable clothes.

All she could come up with was a band T-shirt and a loose pair of basketball shorts.

"Sorry," she muttered. "All I got. I don't really wear girl shorts that aren't denim."

"It's fine, Emma. I really don't need-"

"You're staying the night, right?"

"Huh? I didn't bring anything to-"

"Cool. Let's go make pancakes."

Wide eyed, Regina went into the bathroom to change, then reappeared in the doorway. As soon as she did, Emma gave her a gentle push into the hallway and pulled her down the stairs.

"Where are your parents?" Regina asked in a whisper. "Aren't they going to-"

"Nah. My parents love you as much as yours seem to love me. Anyway, I'm starving. I know I don't usually eat, but you feeding me all the time has got me feeling hungry more often."

With a shrug, the blonde began to fill a bowl with pre-made pancake mix and added the rest of the ingredients. Regina offered to help, and even reached for some of the ingredients to be of assistance, but Emma slapped her hand away and continued cooking. Once the pancakes were done, she handed the girl the jug of syrup with a smile.

"Eat up," she said happily, passing her a large plateful of pancakes next.

The two carried their meal upstairs, after shutting off the stove and rinsing the dishes, then both sat down on Emma's bed. When Regina looked down at the plate with apprehension, Emma cut up a piece of her first pancake, dipped it in syrup, then lifted the fork.

"Try it," she offered. "I make good pancakes, I promise."

Regina hesitantly but obediently opened her mouth, allowing Emma to place the fork between her lips as she took her first bite of the meal. Her eyes shut as she tasted the sugar on her tongue.

"Oh, holy shit," she groaned. "You're gonna give me a sweet tooth. And cavities."

"Darling, if you're this sweet already and don't have cavities, you never will."

The brunette froze at the boldness of this comment as she stared into Emma's deep green eyes. They were flashing with something Regina hadn't seen yet. There was flirtation there, but also… There was passion.


	7. Chapter 7: Defending Her Honor

"I thought I was a twatwaffle," Regina said slowly, a smirk growing on her lips.

"You are," Emma said quickly. "But you're a sweet twatwaffle. Like, a candy twatwaffle."

"A candy twatwaffle…?"

Regina had to hold in her laughter.

"Yeah, man. Like a candy apple?"

"I've never had a candy apple before."

"Damn, girl. You've never lived."

"Yeah, I, uh…. I guess not…"

"Hey, kid," the blonde started softly. "Don't worry about it. It's over-rated."

"You just said I haven't lived because I haven't tried it."

Emma bit her lip, then said, "I was trying to make you feel better. They are really good."

"It's alright. There's a lot I haven't tried."

"What's the most daring thing you've ever done? Like, the craziest thing you can think of?"

"I kissed Belle French once," Regina confessed.

"You did _what?_ " the blonde gasped. "Belle? Seriously? I thought she was straight!"

"She is. It was a dare. I chickened out of everything else, so they kind of made me do it."

"Wow, dude. Caving in to peer pressure doesn't really seem like you."

"I had a weak moment. Anyway, that's the answer."

"That's not really that crazy. I'm just surprised you kissed _her._ "

"Yeah, well… Like I said, it was a dare. Nothing meaningful."

"Did you like it?"

Regina paused and looked up into Emma's eyes.

A flash of embarrassment spread through her as she replied, "Yes."

Emma smirked, taunting her, "Oh, yeah? She's pretty hot. You get any sexy tongue action?"

"Emma!" the girl gasped, covering her eyes with her hands. "That's-"

"Just asking!" When Regina, completely red in the face, didn't say anything else, Emma pressed, "So, did you?"

"Why do you care?" the brunette snapped, finally uncovering her eyes.

"I don't! I was just teasing!"

Sighing, the girl replied, "No, I didn't. I've never kissed anyone with tongue."

Suddenly, it was Emma's turn to blush as she looked down at her own lap. Without really intending to, her thoughts turned to her own tongue in Regina's mouth, and it made her heart race and her cheeks warm. She was only torn from these thoughts when the girl spoke again.

"Em? You okay?"

"Huh? Yeah! Yeah, fine."

"So what's it like?"

"What?"

"Kissing someone… you know… with tongue."

"Oh! Oh… Um… It's… It depends on who you're kissing, I guess. I've never really had anyone spectacular at it…"

"Have… Have you kissed a lot of people?"

"That's sort of an offensive question, don't you think?"

But Emma was more embarrassed than anything else. She certainly had kissed a few people, but none of it had been serious. She'd never really been in a committed relationship. Her trust issues had prevented that. Not to mention, she hadn't exactly been ready to settle down.

"I'm sorry… Shit… Em, I'm sorry… I didn't mean for it to come out like that... I was just…"

"It's fine," Emma said shortly, looking away. "I've kissed plenty of people. Nothing special."

"Emma…"

"What?"

"I didn't mean to offend you," Regina told her quietly, putting her hand on the girl's thigh. "I really am sorry."

The blonde's heart stopped when she felt the girl's touch, and she dropped her gaze to look at Regina's hand. Time seemed to stop as they sat in silence, until finally, Regina spoke again.

"You should sleep. I should really go home and-"

"Stay, Regina. You shouldn't be alone right now."

"I guess your right. Tonight was pretty shitty."

"I'm sorry, hun."

The brunette nodded her head and quietly finished her pancakes before letting out a long yawn.

"You tired, kiddo?" Emma asked, a small smile pulling at the corners of her lips.

"Yeah, kinda. Not gonna lie."

"I'll take your plate downstairs, then we can hit the sack."

"I can take my own-" Regina tried to protest, but Emma grabbed the plate away and was already half-way out the door.

"Shut up, punk," the blonde told her with a smirk, then hurried down the stairs to rinse the dishes and put them in the sink.

When she returned, Regina was laying beneath the covers, nearly asleep, with her eyes closed. Emma just smiled and slipped beneath the covers with her. As she slept, she ended up rolling onto her side, facing Regina, and the brunette ended up rolling backwards so that her back was leaning against Emma's chest. A few hours later, the blonde woke with her hand on Regina's hip. Blushing, she immediately removed it and leaned away, but as she moved backwards, Regina fell against her, and they ended up in the same position they'd started in. Since Emma didn't dare to move, she stayed still, but focused hard on keeping her hands to herself. As she fell back asleep, she felt her face grow hot with anxiety while thinking of the way the girl's hair smelled like apples.

In the morning, Emma woke first again, in the exact same position they'd slept in. Regina was breathing deeply. Of course, Emma didn't want to wake the sleeping beauty, but given that she had to go to work, she gently pushed the brunette's shoulder forward to give herself enough space to slip out from under the covers. As she moved away, the girl slowly rolled until her back was against the mattress for the first time since she'd fallen asleep.

After getting ready for work, the blonde hesitated next to the bed, debating whether or not to wake the sleeping girl to say goodbye. Figuring that it would be slightly awkward to leave the girl alone without saying anything, but not wanting to disturb her, she decided to scribble down a quick note for her to wake up to.

 _Hey, Gina,_

 _Had to go to work, but I can stop by your place to do some more yard work around two-thirty this afternoon. Job #2 didn't need me tonight, so I'll be free. Let me know if I shouldn't stop by. It's fine if you're not there. Help yourself to anything in the cupboards for breakfast. We've got bread, eggs, and cereal. Text me and let me know you got home okay? Hopefully, I'll see you later._

 _Emma_

The girl blushed a little as she re-read her own words, pausing at, "Text me and let me know you got home okay?" What kind of request was that? It wasn't like Regina was her significant other or anything. It wasn't even like they were friends. Were they friends? They certainly spent enough time together, but when she thought about how different they were, it seemed so unlikely. In her wildest dreams, she never could have imagined being _friends_ with Regina Mills, let alone sharing a bed with her. She couldn't help but look more than once when she saw her. (Oops.) The girl was beautiful. It was impossible to deny. But she was also rich and popular, which were some of the last traits Emma would ever expect to have in a friend, or even an acquaintance.

But there the girl was, sleeping in her bed, looking stunning in the morning light. With a sigh, Emma drew a tiny heart at the bottom corner of the paper and left it on the nightstand before leaving for work.

At first glance, upon waking up slowly and sleepily glancing at the note, Regina yawned and didn't think much of it. As she woke up a little more, though, and soaked in the words Emma had written on the page, her interest was heightened. When she saw the small heart down at the bottom corner, a blush rose to her cheeks. _She's just being cute,_ she told herself. _She didn't mean anything by it._ But still, it seemed strange and out of place, and it made Regina's stomach flip.

After making her way downstairs and saying an awkward good morning to Emma's parents, the brunette sat down at the small kitchen table and had a bowl of plain, store-brand Cheerios. When she was finished, she sad a polite goodbye to the adults and left the apartment.

Once she'd arrived home and texted Emma that she was alright, she found herself sitting on the couch and continuing to stare at her phone as she waited for a response. She flicked on the television to the Animal Planet channel and absently let it play in the background. Unfortunately, her thoughts drifted to the horrible night she'd had with the young man her parents had set her up with, and her stomach began to turn from anxiety. She couldn't get the experience out of her head. All she could think about, other than the boy's hands gripping her wrists tightly, was the way Emma had held her closely while she'd cried right after it happened. Something about the girl's embrace had calmed her in a way no one else would have been able to.

Finally, around two-fifteen, Regina's phone buzzed, signaling that she had a new message. When she saw that it was from Emma, an effortless smile crossed her lips.

' **Headed over now. Thanks for letting me know you got home okay.'**

Twenty-five minutes later, Emma arrived at the house in her gardening clothes – denim shorts and a stained white tank top – and knocked at the door. Regina answered it quickly.

"You don't have to knock, you know," she laughed. "You can just come in."

"I figured the door would be locked."

"I'm gonna make you a key, in case we're not here and you need to get into the garage or something."

"Wow," Emma said, surprised at the gesture. "That's… That's very kind of you, but-"

"It's more convenient for us anyway. That way, we don't have to be around when you're working."

"Ahh, I get it. Don't wanna see me, huh?" the blonde joked with a smirk.

"No, Emma. That's not what I meant! I just meant that if we have to do something or we're out somewhere, it won't mean you can't work."

"Oh, right. Wouldn't wanna give me a break, would ya?"

With a wink, Emma shoved her hands into her pockets.

"Very funny," Regina said. "Come in and have a drink. You look exhausted and it's really hot outside. I don't want you to get dehydrated and pass out on my front lawn."

"Yeah, I'm pretty wiped. That five hour shift was surprisingly brutal." After drinking half the bottle of water she was handed, Emma announced, "Well, I should get to work. Don't wanna waste the sunlight, and gardens need to be watered."

"Alright. I'll be inside if you need anything. Thank you, Emma."

So the girl nodded her head and headed for the back yard. When she turned the hose on, though, only a trickle of water came out.

"Hmm," she said thoughtfully, examining the end of the hose.

She walked to the house where the handle for the water pressure control was and attempted to twist it to the left, but found that it was all the way on already. After dragging her hand along half the length of the hose, checking for kinks and folds that might stop the flow of the water, she found the culprit of the low pressure. There was a large hole and several bite marks where the water was pouring out onto the ground.

"Ah-ha!" she sad triumphantly, happy to have found an explanation for the problem.

Then, realizing that she had no way to water the garden at that point, she frowned. Knowing that the hose needed to be replaced, she walked back into the house and found Regina at the kitchen table work, pouring over paperwork.

"Hey," she said quietly. "Um…"

"What's up, Em?" the girl asked, lifting her head.

"I think a fox or an opossum or some other animal got ahold of the hose. There's a big hole in it and a bunch of bite marks. All the water's pouring out the sides. I'm gonna need to replace it, so I gotta run to the hardware store."

"Em, you don't have to do that. Why don't you just work on something else, and I'll worry about that later? I'll have Dad pick one up on the way home from work."

"The gardens really need to be watered. The rain wasn't enough. The ground's still pretty dry."

"Emma, you don't have to-"

"No, really. It's fine. I'll be back in a bit, okay?"

"I'm coming with you," Regina announced, standing up.

"Wait, why?"

"Well, I'm certainly not going to let you pay for the hose. Besides, I need to make a spare key for you anyway, so it's actually pretty convenient. It's also not exactly walking distance, so you'll need me to drive you."

"Ehh…" Emma sighed. "I guess you've got a point. You ready to go?"

"Mhmm. Lemme grab my keys and we're outta here."

So the two left in Regina's car and arrived at the hardware store a few minutes later. As they stepped inside the shop, though, Regina froze.

"What?" Emma asked, noting that the girl had stopped walking. "What's the matter?"

"That's… That's the guy that… that…"

Emma's eyes flashed and scanned the room. Upon seeing the only young man in the vicinity, her eyes narrowed.

"That fucker?" she asked quickly, nodding in the boy's direction. "That guy, right there?"

When Regina nodded, Emma stomped off like a shot, advancing on the boy with incredible speed. She didn't hesitate before grabbing him by the collar of his light blue polo shirt and slamming him into the shelves of paint in the isle where he was standing.

"Hey, fuckface," she hissed. "You don't know me, but I know who the fuck you are, and I think you owe someone and apology."

By this time, Regina had hurried to the girl's side and had her hand on the blonde's shoulder and was protesting, "Emma, don't!"

When the boy's eyes shot over to Regina and he recognized her, a look of horror fell over his face.

"Hey, man," he said, his voice shaking, "Get your fuckin' hands off me."

Luckily for Emma, no one – including the employees – was looking as she spat, "Apologize to this beautiful young woman _right now,_ or God help me, I will make you sorry."

"No way, bitch. She's a-"

"Alright. Have it your way."

Again without hesitation, Emma cocked her arm back, then sent her fist flying forward into the young man's face. Instantly, blood poured down over his mouth, began to drip from his chin, and dribbled all over his carefully ironed shirt.

As he dropped to the floor from the surprising force of the blow, Emma laughed and said, "Hope you learned your lesson, mother fucker. Keep your goddam hands off women until they give you permission."

Just for good measure, Emma kicked him in the gut, causing him to cough and cry out. Regina stared at the blonde as she backed away from the groaning boy, who was cursing at them between labored breaths.

"Fuck you, bitch," he managed to choke out.

After moving back in and kicking him in the jaw, Emma turned and walked away, leaving her companion to follow her into the next isle over, completely stunned.

"Dude," the girl finally breathed. "You can't freaking _do that._ "

"I just did," Emma told her nonchalantly, shrugging her shoulders as she continued walking to the back of the store, where she quickly grabbed a long garden hose off the hanger on the wall, then turned back around to make her way to key copying station.

When Regina followed her, but simply stared as she stopped in front of the desk, Emma turned to her and ordered, "Give him your key, Regina."

The girl fumbled in her purse for the object, then began to struggle to key it off of the key ring. After a few moments of this, Emma grabbed the handful of keys from the brunette and quickly pulled it off the ring, then handed it to the young man behind the counter.

"Just one copy, please," she told him, forcing a smile.

Regina was still staring as the boy, looking a little confused by her demeanor, used the machine to copy the key. When he was finished, the brunette extended her credit card with a shaking hand and waited for him to ring them out. Once she'd signed the receipt, she continued to stand there, holding the two keys in her hand. Emma rolled her eyes when she saw that the girl wasn't about to make a move, then snatched the newer key from her palm.

"Let's go," she said firmly, gently taking Regina's arm and leading her back out of the store, making sure to walk down a different isle than the one where the nasty boy was no doubt still sitting on the floor, whimpering like a small child.

Once outside, Regina stopped in her tracks again and said, "Emma."

Finally, the blonde stopped and turned to look at her, answering, "What?"

"You can't just go around hitting people!" the brunette cried, exasperated by the girl's carefree, unfazed attitude.

"You can't just go around forcing yourself on people," Emma shot back. "And yes I can."

When the blonde turned back around and made her way to the car, Regina had no choice but to follow, still in shock. They drove in silence all the way back to the Mills residence, where Emma grabbed the large bag with the hose and got out of the car. Without saying anything else, she made her way to the back yard, hooked up the new tool, and proceeded to water the gardens, leaving the brunette to go back into the house.

The more she thought about it, the more flattered Regina felt by Emma's actions. She could have gotten caught. The employees could have called the cops and gotten her arrested for assault. Worse, the boy could have managed to hit her back and severely hurt her. But as the brunette replayed the scene in her mind, she realized that the girl had had the situation completely under control, and that she was obviously more than capable of holding her own. She'd dropped the boy to the ground like a falling anvil, as though it were nothing. And the boy wasn't exactly scrawny. He was buff. In fact, Regina was increasingly surprised that she herself had been able to get away from his forceful grasp. She supposed she'd just gotten lucky. Emma, on the other hand, had been skilled.

But why had she taken the risk in the first place? The brunette tried to wrap her head around it, but found herself unable to do so. Why had she been so aggressive? Sure, the guy deserved it, but why had Emma taken it upon herself to be the one to deliver the karma he surely had coming to him? With a sigh, Regina leaned back on the couch and let her head fall to the cushion as she shut her eyes.

A few hours later, as it started to get dark, Emma appeared in the living room and found the girl fast asleep, with her brow scrunched uncomfortably. Concerned that she was having a bad dream, the blonde stepped over to her and put her hand on her shoulder, shaking the girl slightly to wake her from her slumber.

"Huh?" Regina muttered as she stirred awake, her brow still furrowed with anxiety. "What's the matter?"

"Nothing, hun," Emma told her. "I think you were having a bad dream."

"I was, but…"

"But?"

"But you saved me."

"Huh?"

"He was on me… shoving me onto the couch and pinning me down… but you dragged him off of me and… and…"

"And what, honey?" Emma asked, kneeling down beside the couch.

 _Honey?_ she silently scolded herself. _Really, Emma? You're gonna keep calling her honey? Ridiculous. She's gonna think you're crazy._

"You beat the shit out of him."

At this, the gardener smiled, then replied, "As I should have."

"Emma…"

"Yeah?"

"Why did you do that? You could've gotten caught and gotten in serious trouble…"

"I walk on the wild side, remember?" the blonde laughed. "It's what I do. I _live_ for danger."

"I'm serious."

"So am I."

"Emma, come on. You didn't have to hurt him, but you did. We could've just walked out."

"No way was I gonna let him get away with hurting you."

"He didn't hurt me, he just…"

"You're anxious all the time now. I know it's weighing you down. I know what that's like, and I wasn't going to let him off the hook. I'm glad I had a chance to do what I did."

"Emma…"

"Why do you keep saying my name like that?"

"You really shouldn't have done that…"

"Well, I did, so you should probably just get over it."

"Hey, come on. Don't get pissy."

"I'm not. I'm just saying I don't regret it. If we hadn't been in a hardware store, I would have beaten him until he begged for mercy like a cowardly dog."

"Emma!"

"You know I'm not kidding."

"I know, and that's why it's horrible!"

"I know part of you is glad that he got what was coming to him."

"But why did it have to be you?"

"Because I felt the need and desire to defend your honor, m'lady,' Emma said, smirking proudly and bowing her head.

Rather than laugh and write the comment off as empty flirtation, as she might have just after they'd met, Regina blushed. Emma might be the type to tease, but there was some other sound in her voice that sounded like sincerity and sweetness, and it made the brunette's stomach flip painfully.


	8. Chapter 8: No Way in Hell

"You don't need to defend my honor," Regina protested. "I can-"

"I told you. I wanted to."

"But _why,_ Emma? I'm a grown woman, and I-"

"Because I care about you, okay?" the blonde snapped. "Jesus."

Regina's eyes went wide as she stared at the girl, but she finally managed to reply, "I care about you too."

"Don't say that," Emma muttered.

"Why not?"

"Because that's ridiculous."

"Why?"

"Because you don't know me."

"After all the time we've spent together, you don't think I know you at all?"

"Well, I… I mean… I guess you-"

"Unless you're a completely different person when you're not around me, I'd like to think I know a little something about you."

"I am."

"What?"

"I am a completely different person when I'm not around you."

"How?"

"I'm childish. I'm defiant. I'm lazy. I'm a hood rat."

"You're _not_ a hood rat," Regina snapped. "And you're definitely not lazy. You just don't do school. But you certainly are childish and defiant." When Emma laughed, the brunette grinned and added, "Not to mention a complete and total instigating, teasing, snotty little potty-mouth."

"At least I'm not a Barbie," Emma shot back with a grin.

"At least I'm not a little punk who breaks into houses just for fun."

"It's not _just_ for fun. I turn a profit."

Regina had to laugh at this, but she shook her head as she did and looked down at her lap to try to hide her smile.

"You love it," Emma teased, lifting the girl's chin until their eyes met.

When she realized what she'd done, and that she was being flirtatious, Emma blushed and immediately dropped her hand to her side.

"Sorry," she muttered, then immediately regretted the apology.

She should have played it off like it was nothing and kept her mouth shut, but no. She had to draw attention to what she'd done. Her blush didn't waver.

"It's… It's fine," Regina told her, blushing as well as she continued to feel the ghost of Emma's fingertips on her jaw.

"Anway," Emma said with a cough. "I should get going."

"My parents will be home soon. You should stay for dinner."

"Regina, you can't feed me every night I work."

"Sure I can."

The blonde chucked, "Regina," then shook her head, her blonde locks falling in her face.

Without really thinking about it, Regina reached out and tucked the few loose strands behind her ears.

"Stay."

Biting her lip as she saw the sincerity in the girl's dark eyes, Emma nodded her head and said, "Alright."

After dinner, the girl's parents announced that they had to be up early the next morning for a meeting and that they were turning in early, so the girls decided to grab a few books from Regina's room before setting up downstairs, not wanting to disturb them while they slept.

"Hang out for a bit?" Regina asked, handing Emma a copy of _Fight Club_.

Emma took it reluctantly, stared down at its cover, and hesitated without replying to the request.

"Please," Regina pressed. "Seeing him really freaked me out, and I'm…"

Lifting her eyes, the blonde offered a small smile and agreed, "Alright. You just wanna read? Or do you wanna talk about it?"

"I… I don't want to talk about it… It just makes me feel sick."

"I understand."

So the two each got comfortable on one end of the couch, opening their books to where they'd left off. After a while, Emma looked up to find Regina engrossed in the pages and smiled to herself. It was beautiful to see the girl so calm. It made her nervous to recognize this, but she couldn't help but notice. Once she'd realized that she was staring, Emma shook herself from her trance and gently pushed the pads of her feet against the tops of Regina's. When the girl looked up, the blonde was grinning.

"Hi," Emma said.

"Hi," Regina laughed. "You getting bored?"

"A little. I don't have a great attention span."

"I noticed."

"Wanna make a snack?"

"You're hungry again already?" the brunette chuckled.

"Kinda. I was thinking something sweet. Got any ice cream? I think that'll probably cheer you up."

"Well… Frozen yogurt."

"That'll work."

Regina got up to retrieve the treat and left the living room.

When she returned with only one bowl, Emma looked confused and asked, "What about you?"

"I really shouldn't have more sweets. Like I said, I'm gonna get cavities if I'm not careful."

Emma laughed at this and took the bowl of frozen yogurt when it was handed to her. Regina sat down beside her and watched as the girl enjoyed the treat. After a few bites, the blonde turned to her and lifted her spoon up to Regina's lips.

"One bite," she encouraged the girl. "It's good."

"Emma, I-"

But the gardener had already positioned the spoon in front of her lips, and with a blush, she opened her mouth and allowed Emma to put a bite of the frozen snack past her lips. When she closed her mouth around the spoon, it was Emma's turn to blush, enticed by the sight. Regina closed her eyes and let out a soft moan, which didn't exactly help the blonde's hormones to relax.

"So good," the girl groaned.

"Want another bite?"

When Regina looked hesitant but interested, Emma grinned and lifted another spoonful to her lips. The brunette welcomed it, and her companion continued to stare. There was something sensual about the way the girl removed the frozen treat from the spoon, and it gave Emma goose bumps. The third bite left chocolate residue on Regina's bottom lip, and poor, tortured Emma found herself unable to stop looking at it. Before she could stop herself, she was imagining her tongue passing over the small mess to clean it. She dropped her spoon into the bowl and finally tore her eyes away.

"What?" Regina asked anxiously.

"N-Nothing," Emma said quickly, lifting her head. "I… You've… got…"

"Ahh! Where?!"

"Your lip… It's…"

Regina licked her top lip slowly, and her companion's heart stopped. _Oh, fuck,_ she was thinking. _God, that's hot._

When she realized that the girl hadn't removed the chocolate, though, Emma blurted, "You, uh… You missed it."

"Well, get it," the brunette whined.

Looking shocked, Emma's eyes widened as she stammered, "I… Um…"

When Regina looked serious, though, her face full of embarrassed concern, the blonde reached out and slowly wiped away the chocolate with her thumb, her fingertips once again brushing the girl's jawline.

"Thanks," Regina said, blushing as a tingle ran down her spin, causing her to shiver.

Emma noticed and asked, "You cold?"

If possible, the brunette turned even redder as she shook her head, quickly replying, "No. I'm good."

There was a long moment of silence before either of them spoke again as they both avoided each other's gaze.

Finally, the blonde said, "So, uh… I should probably go… It's getting late, and my parents-"

"Send them a text and tell them you're staying late," Regina offered. "Let's go upstairs and chill."

"But I-"

"C'mon, Em. Don't be a party-pooper. We were relaxing. It's good just to have you here."

 _It's good just to have you here,_ Emma repeated silently, her head spinning. _Seriously?_ She shook her head to get rid of the thoughts that followed, then pulled out her phone to send her parents the text. Once they'd messaged back that this was fine – they loved Regina enough to let Emma stay out part curfew – Emma nodded her head.

"Okay. I'll stay for a bit longer."

Regina smiled triumphantly, grabbed the empty bowl, and brought it into the kitchen. When she returned to the living room, she tugged Emma off the couch and pulled her up the stairs all the way to her bedroom where she sat down on the bed with her book. Emma joined her, and the two read quietly for another hour before Emma looked up from the pages.

"I gotta go, Gina."

The girl sighed and looked out the window into the darkness of the night. Emma was right. It was well past midnight.

When the blonde noticed how melancholy the girl looked, though, she asked, "What's the matter, doll? Why the long face?"

"I don't want you to go, and I'm scared to sleep."

"Hey… Regina…"

"Well, I'm not scared to sleep. I'm scared to dream."

Emma nodded her head and put her hand on the girl's bare thigh. The softness of her skin sent a shock through her palm, all the way down to her ankles.

"It's alright, hun. They're just dreams. They end, and you'll wake up and be okay."

"I know, but while I'm in them…"

Again, Emma nodded her understanding. She knew all too well what it was like to have reoccurring nightmares.

"I'm sorry, Regina. I wish I could help."

"You do help, Emma," the brunette sighed. "You being around me helps keep me calm."

"I thought I made your blood boil," the girl teased.

Regina returned her playful smile and answered, "You do. But that's only sometimes."

"I have an idea," Emma said suddenly, standing up. "Get up."

Looking confused, Regina stood up, then looked shocked as Emma tore the sheets and comforter from her bed. Working quickly, she weighed down the corners of the comforter on the edge of the bed with a small pile of books, then draped it until the other corner reached the girl's desk. There, she put another stack of books to hold it up. Once the sheets and an extra blanket were spread over the floor, the brunette watched, eyes wide, as Emma then grabbed all of the pillows and crawled beneath the makeshift canopy, propping several of them all around the perimeter of the fort.

After that, she stumbled out from underneath and grabbed the small nightlight off Regina's desk and brought it into the homemade tent. Once she'd crawled back out one more time to shut off the room's overhead light, she grabbed her companion's hand and dragged her under the canopy until they were both laying on the floor on top of the sheets.

"What the hell?" Regina finally laughed, looking around the dimly lit tent.

"It's a blanket fort, duh."

"Yeah, but why would anyone want to sleep on the floor?"

"Oh, don't be such a spoil-sport. It's fun! Pretend-camping is the best."

"We don't even have s'mores," the brunette joked.

Emma smiled at her and said, "But we have books."

"That we do."

The blonde handed over Regina's book, then watched as the girl yawned before opening its pages.

"Sleepy?" she asked with a smirk.

Regina shook her head, saying, "Nuh-uh," but Emma knew better. It was obvious that the girl was falling asleep, so she said, "Just try passing out in here. It's relaxing, and it'll make you feel safe. It's like a cocoon."

After looking around again, Regina nodded slowly and replied, "Yeah, I guess you're right. It is pretty cozy."

With a nod in reply, Emma leaned back against the pillows and folded her hands behind her head, looking triumphant.

Sitting back beside her, probably a little closer than was necessary, Regina shut her eyes and sighed softly. After a while of silence, Emma looked over at her and watched as her breathing slowed. Once she was sure that the girl had fallen asleep, Emma made a move to get up, knowing that she had to be home soon, but just as she sat up, Regina muttered something in her sleep, and her head dropped to the blonde's shoulder.

 _Oh, fuck,_ Emma sighed to herself. _I'm in so much shit right now._

But she couldn't bring herself to pull away. Regina's soft snoring kept her frozen in place. It was only when Regina slumped down, her head finally falling to the pillow, that Emma was able to wiggle away and gather her things. She was reluctant to leave, but knowing that her parents would probably skin her alive if she broke her already extended curfew, she was forced to head home.

Around three in the morning, she got a text from Regina that woke her from an uneasy sleep.

' **Did you have to go?'**

The blonde sighed and texted back, **'Yeah. Parents woulda killed me.'**

' **Why are you awake?'**

' **Your text woke me haha.'**

' **Oh, my Gosh! I'm so sorry, Emma. I didn't mean to wake you! :('**

' **It's fine, love. How's the fort?'**

' **The fort's a little less safe without my knight to reinforce it and defend my honor.'**

Emma's face went white. _What the hell?_ she was thinking. _She's definitely flirting with me._ _ **Her**_ _knight?_

She wasn't sure how to respond, but she managed, **'I'm sorry. I'm a shitty member of the round table, I guess.'**

' **No, Em. You're perfect. A valiant knight, to say the least. Worthy of all the glory of the Holy Grail.'**

 _Oh, God. Oh, God. She's flirting with me. She's_ _ **flirting**_ _with me!_

' **Oh, I don't think so. But your honor is worth defending, m'lady.'** When a few minutes had passed without a reply, Emma added, **'Get some sleep, buddy. I'm working all day tomorrow, but I'll text you.'**

' **Stay the night tomorrow night? I'll leave the fort up. We can eat popcorn and read and stuff.'**

' **I'll ask Mom and Dad.'**

' **Sweet dreams.'**

' **Sweet dreams, m'lady.'**

But something in her stomach turned as she thought of the way Regina had leaned against her while she slept, and it kept her awake for most of the night. Eventually, though, she did fall asleep.

As promised, she texted Regina throughout the following day, until she was finally out of work around nine-thirty that evening. She went straight to Regina's house, having already packed a bag after her parents had approved the sleepover.

Regina had told her not to knock, given the time of night she would be showing up, so Emma let herself into the large residence and slipped quietly inside. When she didn't find Regina in the living room, she made her way up the stairs, being careful not to step on the one creaky stair near the top. When she opened the door to the girl's bedroom, the brunette lept off the bed and threw her arms around her.

"Emma!" she cried happily, burying her face in the blonde's neck. "I'm so glad you came."

"I said I would, didn't I?" Emma asked lightly, trying to hide her surprise at the enthusiastic embrace.

"You did," Regina said with a grin. "And just like a white knight, you were true to your word."

"Always will be."

The two shared a smile before Regina tugged her into their tent once more, then pushed her own book into Emma's hands.

"Huh?" the girl asked, looking down and noticing that the book cover read _The Catcher in the Rye._

"You should read to me."

"What?"

"I'm tired already, but my brain is too frazzled to relax."

"I… I stutter when I read out loud."

"I don't care," Regina told her. "Just read?"

Without waiting for her reply, the brunette leaned back against the pillows and shut her eyes. _She knows me too well,_ Emma was thinking. _She knows I can't say no to her._ So the blonde began to read, starting where the girl's pink bookmark was placed between the pages. After a few pages, she looked over at the girl beside her and listened for her breathing. It was slow and heavy.

"You awake?" she whispered.

Regina nodded her head, a smile spreading over her lips as she replied, "Mhmm. Keep reading."

"What am I, your nanny?" Emma joked.

The girl's eyes shot open.

"No. But you're not really stuttering, so you should keep going."

"But I-"

"It makes me feel better."

Emma couldn't argue with this, so she nodded her head and picked up where she left off, a lump rising to her throat. Every now and then, she glanced over at Regina to make sure she was still awake.

When the blonde trailed off, Regina muttered, "C'mere a minute."

Slightly confused by the request, Emma scooted a little closer and continued to look down at the brunette.

She shook her head, opened her eyes, and tugged on Emma's arm until the girl was leaning in right next to her. Regina sat up slightly, then looked into the blonde's anxious, piercing green eyes.

"I'm not comfortable."

Raising an eyebrow, Emma just said, "Um…" and continued to stare.

Rolling her eyes as she realized that the girl was incapable of taking a hint, Regina lifted Emma's arm and draped it around her own shoulders, then leaned back against it, allowing her head to fall against the blonde the same way it had the night before. This time, though, it was intentional. As Regina let out a quiet, contented sigh, butterflies erupted in Emma's stomach.

When Regina's companion was silent, she muttered, "What?" and nudged the girl's shoulder.

Emma opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out.

"What?" Regina repeated, keeping her eyes closed.

"N-Nothing," Emma lied. When she realized that she hadn't been telling the whole truth, she started, "I…"

"Come here," the brunette whispered, finally opening her eyes as she pulled the girl closer.

Emma blushed as their faces grew closer together and Regina stated, "You're nervous."

"W-What?" the blonde stuttered dumbly as she fell deeply into Regina's chocolate eyes.

"I said, 'You're nervous.'" When the girl looked horrified and didn't reply, she added, "Are you not?"

"I…"

"Okay. Tell me why then. We've shared a bed several times. You've left your hand on my hip half the night and fallen asleep with your head on my shoulder. I've done the same. What's different?"

 _Shit!_ Emma silently cursed. _I thought she was asleep for that!_ But obviously, she hadn't been. But then… if she'd known… she hadn't moved her hand… Emma blushed at the realization, and Regina picked up on it instantly.

"I don't understand you, Emma Swan," she said slowly. "Half the time, you're a cocky, flirtatious tool. The other half, you're this shy, reserved girl who won't tell me how she feels."

 _How I feel? Fuck! What is she doing to me?_

The blonde's palms began to sweat, and she squirmed uncomfortably, but was unable to actually move, given that Regina was still pressed into her side.

"I don't want you to be scared to tell me things," Regina explained. "I hate that you keep so much to yourself. It makes me feel ridiculous about my own emotions."

' _My own emotions.'_ Emma replayed the words in her mind. _What emotions? What is she talking about?_ She started to panic. Surely, she didn't mean…

"I…" the girl managed. "I didn't mean to make you feel… I…"

With a sigh, Regina reached out, cupped Emma's cheek, and whispered once again, "Come here."

When the girl made no move to do so, the brunette's hand slipped behind her neck and pulled her in until their lips were hovering close together. As Emma froze, Regina took the girl's hand, squeezed it gently, then sat up just enough to press their lips together in a slow-burning kiss.

Emma's heart stopped, but thankfully, it didn't keep her lips from moving in time with Regina's. Purely out of nervous impulse, the blonde squeezed her companion's hand tightly as heat flooded her cheeks.

 _What the hell is this?_ Emma was thinking as she continued the kiss, completely shocked by Regina's boldness. _What is she doing?_

When Regina finally broke the seal of their lips, she sighed and looked back into Emma's eyes, which were flashing with anxiety.

"Was it that bad?" the brunette asked sadly, dropping her hand to her side.

"N-No!" Emma quickly sputtered. "No! I…"

"It's okay," Regina told her, pulling away and pushing Emma's arm down. "I get it."

"Wait. Regina…"

"No, it's cool. I just thought… The way you were looking at me… I thought…"

"What?"

"When you were feeding me that frozen yogurt…" the brunette tried to clarify. "I thought… You looked like you wanted to kiss me. I'm sorry. I read it wrong, and I apologize. That was silly of me. I know you said we were different and that our lives would never-"

"No," her companion cut her off sharply. "I was wrong about that. Our lives might not be the same, but that doesn't mean they could never overlap."

"But you said…"

"I know what I said. I was wrong, okay? I'm sorry. You're not who I thought you would be. Not at all. You're a wonderful girl, with an amazing personality, who is incredibly smart. I admire you for that."

"But… you don't…"

"Yes, I do," Emma assured her, finally gathering the bravery to reach up and cup the girl's face. "I do."

"What?"

"Oh, shut up, Barbie," Emma grinned, kissing her firmly on the mouth. When Regina pulled away after a few moments of passion, looking confused and full of disbelief, Emma added, "There's no way I could resist your charms, Regina Mills. No way in Hell."


	9. Chapter 9: Inseparable

From then on, the two were inseparable. Whether they were at Emma's or Regina's – usually Regina's – they spent every free moment together. When Emma wasn't working or being berated by her parents, she was with Regina. She worked harder than ever on the grounds of the Mills' residence, even after long days at her other two jobs. She left like she had to prove herself, or at least… she wanted to. Anything she could do in an attempt to impress Regina, she did with fervor and devotion.

Though the brunette certainly noticed the girl's increased work ethic – not that she hadn't already been giving the tasks her all – and she _was_ impressed, she didn't realize that that was Emma's goal. In fact, the girl's efforts just ended up worrying Regina, to the point where she decided to step in.

"Hey," she said, announcing her presence as she stepped out onto the patio and watched as Emma knelt in front of the center garden, putting all her effort into pulling weeds.

The girl's head jerked up and whipped around as she was startled by the girl's sudden appearance.

"Hey," she greeted her, standing up and blinking a few times beneath the glare of the bright sunlight. "What's cookin', good lookin'?"

"You look tired," Regina told her, approaching slowly with a bottle of water in each hand.

"N-No," Emma stuttered in response. "I'm fine."

"No, really. You look like you're gonna faint. You're working too hard. Drink something."

"I'm-"

"Drink," the brunette pressed, shoving one of the cold bottles into Emma's hand.

The gardener obeyed, twisting the top off and taking a large gulp, then sighing with relief as the liquid cooled her enough to breathe regularly.

"You've been out here too long," Regina said matter-of-factly. "Come inside and rest."

"Regina, I'm fine. I want to finish this garden before I go home tonight."

Stepping closer and putting her hands on Emma's hips, the beautiful brunette softly suggested, "Don't go home tonight."

"Regina, I… My parents-"

"-Love me. They _love_ me. They're gonna be fine with it."

"They're gonna figure it out, Regina… I can only spend so many days with you before they realize what's going on."

"And what exactly is going on, Miss Swan?"

Emma rolled her eyes. Regina was such a tease.

"Knock it off, Gina. I'm serious."

"Alright, fine. So why don't you just tell them and get it over with?"

"Because they'd never let me see you, and they'd make my life a living Hell!"

Sighing, Regina let go of Emma's hips and pushed a hand through her hair, dropping the other to her side.

"Come on. Don't get upset," the blonde sighed. "You know I can't just tell them. It's not like you're telling your parents."

"They don't even know I'm gay, Emma! That's totally different! At least yours already know you're into girls, and this won't come as a huge shock to them!"

"It totally will. They think you're a perfect little angel," Emma countered. "Which you are, but still."

"I'm not an angel, Emma."

"Of course you are. Now, let me get back to work so I can get this done. I want your parents to be pleasantly surprised when they see how well I've done this job. You go back inside and relax."

" _You_ come inside and relax."

"Regina, no."

In her own manner of protest, Regina stepped closer again and wrapped her arms around Emma's neck. The blonde tensed and began to pull away, but the girl caught her lips and pressed herself against her body.

When Emma was finally able to break the kiss, she said breathlessly, "Regina. Not here. Your parents-"

"-Aren't here. They're at some fancy dinner with their colleagues. It's fine, Emma."

"I… Okay…"

Upon hearing her concede to her advances, Regina kissed the girl again, slowly, and tangled her fingers in her hair. With her free hand, she slid beneath Emma's tank top and pressed her hand against her abdomen, making Emma whine in response.

"Gina, don't. I'm gross and sweaty, and I-"

"Have you considered that maybe that's how I like you?"

"What?"

"I like you like this. Hot… Sweaty… Sexy."

"Regina, that's-"

"Kiss me, idiot."

So Emma leaned back in and slid their lips together, resting her hands on Regina's hips.

"That's better," the brunette mumbled against her lips. After finally breaking the kiss and pulling away, she said, "Now, come inside and get something to eat."

"I'll come in when I'm finished with this garden."

"Alright, fine. But I'm helping."

"Don't be ridiculous. This is my job, and-"

"Shut up and weed the fucking garden," Regina laughed with a grin, kneeling down and immediately reaching for a clump of weeds, quite literally getting her hands dirty.

Rolling her eyes, Emma knelt beside her and continued the work. Almost an hour later, the center garden was free of weeds, and they were both exhausted.

"Alright. Will you come inside now?"

"I should go home, Gina. I need a shower, and I-"

"Shower here. You can wear my shorts to bed."

"Regina, I'm not showering here. I have no clothes, and I'm definitely not wearing yours."

"You sure you don't want to shower with me?"

When Regina winked at her, Emma's mouth hung open.

"What?"

"Just teasing," the brunette told her with a grin, kissing her firmly on the lips, then turning around to go back into the house.

Slightly stunned, Emma followed close behind and met the girl in the kitchen where Regina was waiting for her with another bottle of water.

"Drink."

"Regina-"

"Drink."

Sighing heavily, Emma did as she was told, taking the bottle from the brunette and drinking it slowly.

"Good girl."

"I'm not a dog," Emma growled, setting the half-empty water bottle on the counter.

Before either of them could speak again, the sound of heels clicking on the tile floor caused them both to jump and turn around.

"Jeez, mom!" Regina cried. "Way to scare the heck out of us. I thought you guys were at dinner!"

"It was really more just afternoon cocktails. We decided not to stay for the meal. How are you ladies doing? The garden looks great!"

The two girls shot each other a panicked glance as they wondered how much of their interaction Regina's mother had seen.

"How long have you guys been home?" Regina asked quickly, looking nervous.

"Long enough, dear," her mother answered with a wink in her daughter's direction as she turned to face the blonde. Before Regina had a chance to look terrified, the woman asked, "Why don't you stay for dinner, dear?"

"Huh?" Emma blurted, completely stunned. "I… I mean… I'd love to, Mrs. Mills. Thank you very much for the invitation."

"You girls must be starving after all that work."

Again, the girls looked at each other, wondering what the woman had seen.

"Um… Yeah," Regina cut in, nodding her head. "Emma worked all day before she came here, so she's probably pretty wiped by now."

"Oh, goodness, dear! Drink something!"

Eyes wide, all Emma could think was, _God. Now I know where Regina gets her predisposition for worrying._ Following the woman's orders, she slowly drank the rest of her water, then tossed the bottle into the recycling bin.

"Why don't you two go upstairs and spend some time together relaxing while I make dinner?" Mrs. Mills offered, stunning the girls into silence as Regina just nodded her head and turned to hurry up the stairs with Emma close behind her.

As soon as the door was shut tightly, Emma sank down onto the bed and stared at the brunette, gaping.

"She totally knows."

"No way. She's just likes you and wants you to stay for dinner."

"Regina. She knows. She's probably going to have your dad shoot me at the dinner table."

"Don't be silly," the girl replied, trying to convince herself more than Emma. "They're oblivious."

"No way, man. Did you see the way she winked at you? She's totally gonna have your dad shoot me. Not to mention, I'd bet _anything_ that your dad has at least two guns and has done service in the military."

"Well…"

"Oh, my God. He does, doesn't he?"

"He owns three… A revolver, a pistol, and a shotgun. And yeah… He was in the Marines when he was younger…"

"Oh, _Jesus_ ," Emma moaned. "I am _so_ totally fucked."

"Come on, Em. They don't know. She was just being weird."

"You have to admit, though… If they did find out, he'd fucking kill me."

"Yeah, probably," the brunette sighed, pushing a hand through her hair. "But they don't, okay? So relax."

"What if she saw us? What if _he_ saw us?"

"Emma…"

"Seriously, Regina!"

"Why would she have invited you to stay for dinner, then?"

"To give him an opportunity to tear me a new asshole, obviously!"

"Emma!"

"Oh, GOD!"

"Em, calm down. It's gonna be fine. They don't know, and they're not gonna find out."

"But you think it's a good plan to tell _my_ parents? Like they wouldn't tell yours if they found out?"

"Oh, shit… I didn't even think of that…"

"Yeah, well. There you go. Nobody's telling anybody anything."

"I just feel like they're gonna find out anyway because of how much time we're spending together."

"I feel the same way about your parents!"

"Girls!" Regina's mother called up the stairs. "Time for dinner!"

"Shit, that was fast," the blonde cursed. "Guess it's time to go get shot. Dead girl walkin' here. Everybody step aside."

"Oh, my God, Emma," Regina groaned. "Don't be dramatic. We're gonna go down there and eat and everything's gonna be fine."

"I'll miss you when I'm burning in Hell, darling," Emma told her theatrically, stepping closer. "Kiss me goodbye! I want the last thing I taste to be your lips."

"Oh, Jesus. You're insufferable."

But Regina kissed her anyway.

Walking down the stairs towards the dinner table, Emma began to sweat, but Regina played it cool and sat down in her chair with grace and poise.

"How are you ladies?" Regina's father asked with a smile, looking between them. "Did you both have a good day?"

"Yes, sir," Emma answered quickly, swallowing the lump in her throat in order to reply. "Today was long, but I was productive, and that makes it all worth it."

"You are quite the young lady, Miss Swan," the man told her, his lips still curled upwards. "Your work ethic is admirable. My daughter is very, very lucky to have you as her significant other."

Both the girls' mouths fell open as they stared at the man, completely frozen.

"Absolutely," Mrs. Mills agreed. "We couldn't have asked for anyone better for our daughter. Had we known the nature of your relationship beforehand, we never would have tried to set her up with our co-worker's son."

"Mom, I…" Regina tried, gaping at her mother.

"I understand, Regina," the woman told her. "It must be a difficult thing to discuss. I'm sure you must have worried about what we must think… but I can assure you that your father and I support you and whoever makes you happy."

"Mom…"

When Emma looked over, Regina was starting to cry (and probably having a heart attack).

"Oh, honey… Did you think we'd be upset with you?"

Choking back sobs, the brunette nodded her head.

"My baby girl," her father cut in, leaning across the table and taking his daughter's hand. "We love you so much, and there's nothing you could do to lose that love. Do you understand?"

"Daddy, I…"

"Regina Mills. We love you. And the young lady you've chosen as your partner is a lovely girl who we will continue to welcome into our home."

"Mr. Mills… Thank you so much… I never meant to disrespect you or your wife by keeping our relationship from you. We were both just… honestly… terrified of your reaction and what you would think."

"I don't think you disrespected us, Emma. I can completely understand that fear, but please know that all we want is for our daughter to be happy, and if she's happy with you – which she clearly is – then you will always be welcome in our home."

The blonde's eyes filled with tears as the girl beside her squeezed her hand under the table.

"I can't thank you enough," Emma said, wiping her eyes. "My parents…"

"I'm sure your parents will love you no matter what, Emma. I'm sure they are very proud of your hard work and only want you to be happy."

She had to try hard not to laugh, and even then, the sound almost burst out. She managed to hold it back, but just barely.

"I hope so, Mr. Mills," was what she managed to say, her cheeks reddening.

Again, Regina squeezed her hand, but it only made the tears come faster.

Once they were finally alone upstairs again, Emma collapsed on the floor, crossing her legs beneath her as she leaned against the bed.

"Oh, my God," she breathed, wiping her eyes. "I can't believe that just happened."

"Me either," Regina told her breathlessly.

"They seemed to think we were going steady."

"What?"

"You know. Being exclusive?"

"Are we not…?"

"I…"

"Oh. Wow. Um. I guess I was under a serious misconception about what this was."

"No, Regina, wait! I just meant… I didn't… I didn't know if we were official, or… or what we were, really. All I know is that I'm crazy about you, and that I don't want to be with anyone else."

"Oh, Emma…"

"Yeah, um… That came out way mushier than I wanted it to…"

"Em, I..."

"What?"

"I've been dying to hear you say that…"

"So… So what are we?" When Regina was silent, Emma changed her question to, "What am I to you?"

"What do you want to be?"

"Regina," the blonde sighed, taking the girl's hands and tugging her down onto her lap. "You're gonna make me say it, aren't you?"

"Mhmm," Regina giggled, leaning in until their lips were close together. "I want to hear you say it."

"I want to be your one and only, Regina Mills. I don't want to share you, and I don't want to lose you. When I first met you, I never could have imagined being with you like this, but now that we're here… I can't imagine it any other way. I can't imagine myself with anyone else."

"Good. I want to be yours, and only yours."

"So does this make you my girlfriend?"

"It does if you want it to."

"I do."

"Then yes. I'm your girlfriend."

The kiss that followed set off fireworks behind their eyelids when they closed them. Soon, Regina's fingers were tangled in Emma's hair, and Emma's hands were moving down Regina's sides. When the brunette let out a soft whimper into her lover's mouth, the girl's heart jumped into her throat.

"Regina," she breathed against her lips. "I…"

"Don't leave tonight."

"I have to. You know I-"

"Don't leave me."

"Gina, don't…"

"Please, baby?"

 _Oh, God,_ Emma was thinking. _She's calling me baby._

"I… I need…"

"What could you possibly need more than my hands all over you?" the brunette teased, running her hands over Emma's sides.

"I need to tell my parents."

* * *

"This ends _now!_ " Emma's mother screamed as her father cornered her in the kitchen.

"It's disgusting, Emma! How could you corrupt a lovely girl like that? How could you infect her with your-"

"Dad!" the blonde shouted. "She cares about me!"

"I certainly don't know why!" he countered. "You're a horrible influence and an insufferable brat!"

 _Insufferable._ Somehow, when he said it, it made her heart sink, but when Regina said it, it was sweet. The difference was that Emma knew that the girl didn't mean it.

"Dad, please. I'm happy with her! Doesn't that matter to you?"

"Not when you're corrupting perfectly good young girls like her! Her poor parents! They probably have no idea what you're doing to their daughter!"

"THEY DO KNOW!" the blonde yelled. "They know and they love her anyway!"

"Of course they love their daughter! She's an angel, unlike you! How could you do this to her and her family?"

"Do WHAT? Care for her? Respect her? Treat her right?"

Her father just swung his hand back and slapped it across her face, full-force, causing her head to spin and her face to turn red. Instead of continuing to shout and protest, she shrunk to the floor and sobbed.

"You're pathetic," her mother hissed. "Get your stuff and get out. You can come home when you say goodbye to that poor girl for good."

"MOM!" Emma screamed, wiping her eyes and staring up at her parents. "You can't be serious!"

"I'm _very_ serious!"

"I'm not leaving her!"

"Then _get out._ And I hope, for her sake, that you change your mind about this. And quickly."

"Unlike you, she cares about me, and-"

"Get out, Emma. Leave, before I teach you a lesson."

"You already have," the girl snapped. "Don't trust your family."

With that, she ran to her bedroom, packed a bag, and hurried out the door, slamming it behind her.

* * *

"This is unreal!" the blonde shouted, pacing Regina's room. "I fucking told you this would happen!"

"Emma, I'm sorry! I just thought-"

"I never should have told them!"

"Emma…"

"No! Don't fucking try to calm me down right now! I'm so fucking done with them. I _hate_ them!"

"Emma, stop. You don't hate them. You just-"

"He fucking hit me, Regina."

"What?"

"He hit me. My face isn't red from crying. It's red because his fucking hand slapped my face so hard it'll be bruised by tomorrow."

"Oh, my God… Emma…"

"I'm not going back. I don't care if all my shit's there. I'll sleep in the park on a fucking bench. I. Don't. Care. I'm _never_ fucking going back."

"Emma!" Regina cried. "You're not sleeping on a park bench!"

"Well, what's my other option? It's not like-"

"You're staying with me."

"Regina, I can't just fucking move in with you. We just started dating, and-"

"I don't care."

"Moving in together is a big deal. It can make or break a couple, and the relationship should be strong before that test happens."

"I. Don't. Care!" the brunette shouted. "Emma Swan! I'm not letting you sleep on a fucking park bench! Not ever!"

"Don't use my last name. I want nothing to do with my family."

"FINE. Emma Mills! Get your ass is in my bed until we figure this out!"

The blonde went silent at the sound of her name. Her name, and Regina's name. _Emma Mills. Emma Mills. Emma Mills._ Her heart raced, and not from rage. When the brunette saw her expression soften, she reached for her hand and tugged her down onto the bed until they were sitting beside each other.

When Emma said nothing, Regina stuttered, "W-What?"

"I…"

"I'm sorry. I panicked, and it was the first thing that came to mind."

"Emma _Mills_ was the first thing that came to your mind when you thought of my name…?"

Regina blushed and muttered a quick, "Yeah, so?" before looking away.

"So… I like it."

"Emma…" Regina breathed, daring to look back up into her eyes. "I…" She trailed off, then sighed, "Let's get some sleep. We'll figure this out tomorrow."

Without responding, Emma stepped out of her jean shorts and pulled off her jacket, then slipped beneath the covers of the bed as Regina stared at her in surprise.

"What?" Emma asked, her voice betraying her slight anxiety.

"You're… You're in your underwear."

"And you're not. Now get in here. I'm cold."

Instead of protesting – she was too surprised to do so – she slipped out of her own shorts and under the sheets beside her lover.

"Kiss me goodnight, baby," Regina said softly, sliding her hand over Emma's abdomen.

The blonde did as she was told, slowly moving her lips with her lover's until Regina rolled on top of her.

"I'm gonna take care of you," the brunette whispered, kissing the shell of Emma's ear. "You don't have to do this by yourself."

"Hey," Emma protested. "That's my line."

"Shut up and kiss me, Emma Mills."

Only when their lips connected was she able to put the pain aside and relax into her lover's arms.


	10. Chapter 10: So Much

"Good morning, angel," Regina said softly, waking her lover from her slumber.

"Hey, Twatwaffle," the girl teased in response.

"Oh, my God. Really?" The brunette laughed lightly and kissed her lover's forehead, then added, "I thought we were past that."

"Nah," Emma told her. "You're still a twatwaffle. But you're _my_ twatwaffle now."

There was a long moment of silence as Regina reached up and began to absently stroke the blonde's hair, until Emma asked, "Why were you so good to me, after I broke into your house? I mean, like… You didn't even like me. Why take me to the hospital? Why not call the cops?"

"I didn't know you, Emma, and honestly… I'd been judging you based on what other people said. And from what I'd seen of you in class. I never bothered to meet the real you. Anyway, I felt bad for hurting you. Regardless of who I thought you were, I didn't want to see you hurt just because you broke into my house. It's just stuff. I don't care about any of it."

"Oh."

"What? What is it?"

"I don't know," the blonde replied. "I guess I was just hoping you were gonna say that I was so sexy that you couldn't resist me."

"Emma! Can't you be serious for five minutes?"

With a sigh, the girl leaned back against the pillows and pushed a hand through her hair.

"I guess not," she finally muttered.

"Who you really are and who I thought you were are not the same person."

"Yeah, well… Maybe I am that person."

"What?"

Emma sighed again, this time shutting her eyes.

"I'm exactly who you thought I was."

"You are not!"

"I'm a hood rat."

"Emma! You're not a hood rat!"

"I'm getting held back in high school because I don't do my work. I break into people's houses. I steal shit. The only thing I don't do is drugs."

"That's behind you now. You don't have to-"

"I want to."

"But… Em…"

"I'm happy with you, Regina, but… I need that rush again."

"No, you don't! Emma, please…"

With a heavy sigh, Emma rubbed her eyes, then turned to look out of the bedroom window.

"Emma."

"Alright! I won't. Jesus, Regina. Don't be so anal."

"Are you kidding me right now? I don't want you to _rob_ people, so you're calling me anal?"

"Wait. Regina, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that. I just… I just meant…"

"Don't you have to be at work?" the brunette snapped, scowling in her lover's direction.

"Uh… Yeah… I mean, not for another two hours, but… I'll go now. I get it. I'm sorry."

When Emma stood up and began to gather her clothes, Regina walked over to her and put her hand on the girl's shoulder.

"Hey. Don't leave without saying goodbye, okay?"

"But you-"

"I might be upset with you, but it doesn't mean I don't care about you."

"Wow. That sounds awfully platonic."

"Emma, stop it. You know what I meant."

"No. Actually, I don't. What did you mean?"

"Come on, Em. Don't."

"Don't what?"

"Look, we shouldn't be fighting. We're…"

"We're what?"

"We're a team, right?"

Emma paused.

"Well… Yeah…"

"Then just hug me. You don't have to go. I'm sorry I snapped at you."

Sighing again, the blonde wrapped her arms around the shorter girl and held her close, saying, "I'm sorry too. I was being a jerk, and I didn't mean it. It's just hard for me to… I don't know… Behave, I guess. I'm so used to getting into trouble and shit that it's difficult to stay on the straight and narrow, you know?"

Regina nodded and looked up into her lover's eyes, tucking a few stray strands of hair behind her ears.

"Let's go downstairs and have breakfast together, okay?"

When Emma agreed, the brunette took her hand and led her downstairs into the kitchen.

* * *

"Hey, baby," Regina greeted her lover, when the girl walked through the door that evening. "How was work?"

"Ugh," the blonde sighed, wrapping her arms around the smaller girl's waist and squeezing her gently. "So glad to see you."

"That bad, huh?"

"Yeah. The boss is really getting on my nerves."

"I'm sorry, love. I wish I could help."

"It's okay. Staying busy is good for me. It's important. Working hard is part of who I am."

Suddenly, Regina's face twisted into one of confusion as she searched her lover's eyes for answers to questions she couldn't ask.

"What?" Emma pressed, looking just as confused.

"I just don't get you. You work so hard, yet you want to stay in trouble."

"It keeps me on my toes, you know? Gets the adrenaline running."

"We're going white water rafting next weekend, and you're coming with us. We already decided."

"Uh… sorry?"

"You heard me. Me. You. Mom. Dad."

"What?"

"White. Water. Rafting."

"I don't want to-"

"Well, that's too bad, because you're going. I want you to see how fun it is. Besides, it's family bonding time, and I want you to be there for that."

"Alright, fine. If you really _insist_ on making me-"

"I insist," the brunette said with a grin, pressing her lips to the taller girl's. After pulling away and standing in silence for a few moments, Regina added, "I told my parents what happened. They said you can stay here as long as you want."

"Seriously?"

"Seriously. They love you, Emma."

"They wouldn't if they knew that I-"

"They know the real you, just like I do. You're not fake with them. You're polite and considerate, and they appreciate that immensely. I've never had anyone like you in my life before. They couldn't be happier with my choice of a partner, and neither could I. I'm…"

After a moment of hesitation, Emma urged her, "You…?"

"I'm proud of you, Em."

The blonde's lips parted as she stared at the girl in disbelief.

"What?" Regina asked anxiously.

"No one's ever said that to me before."

"Well, it's true. I'm very proud to be with such a lovely, hardworking young woman."

"Aww, c'mon," Emma protested as she blushed. "You sound like a gushing grandma, for Chrissakes."

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever, punk."

Regina pushed on the girl's shoulder, causing her to laugh as she stumbled backwards.

"Hey, _punk._ Knock it off before I give you the chair!"

"I'd like to see you try that one."

When Emma reached for the nearby chair, obviously joking, Regina made a swift move forward and grabbed Emma's wrist, twisting it behind her back and pressing on the space between her shoulders until Emma was bent over the desk.

"Holy shit!" the blonde gasped. "Where the hell did you learn that?"

"Dad taught me," the girl said with a triumphant grin. "I'm sort of rubbish at it, but you weren't expecting it, so it worked out okay."

"Alright, alright. Ah! Shit, man. That hurts! Let go already!"

Laughing brightly, Regina released her lover and allowed her to stand up straight.

"Jesus Christ."

"You're alright. Don't be a baby."

But Emma rubbed her wrist and forced herself to scowl, rather than let out the laughter that was bubbling in her throat.

"Hey… Seriously, though… You okay?"

"Oh, yeah. I'm fine. You just sprained my wrist. No big deal."

"Emma!"

"Ha. C'mon, babe. I'm only playing. I'm okay. That did hurt through. But…"

"But?"

"I gotta be honest…"

"Okay…"

"I dig a girl who can bust a move like that."

With a wink, Emma began to step towards her lover, her eyes flashing.

"Oh, no you don't," Regina scolded her, pressing her hand flat against Emma's collarbone to stop her from advancing. "You're-"

"Come on, baby… Don't you wanna kiss me?"

The brunette wanted to shove the girl away, to continue to tease her, but when Emma flashed a lustful smile, she found her hand dropping to her side and her lips parting as she stared.

"Well?" Emma pressed. "Don't you?"

Regina uttered a breathy, "Yes," and allowed the blonde's hands to rest on her hips.

When their lips connected, the girl felt her knees go weak, and she nearly stumbled forward, and probably would have, had Emma not pulled her tightly into her arms.

"Emma," the brunette finally sighed, after pulling away reluctantly. "I missed you."

"I missed you too, babe. I always do. As soon as I leave, I can't wait to see you again."

"You're so sweet, Emma. What would I do without you?"

"You'd have a lot more free time," the girl laughed, kissing her lover's forehead.

"Very funny." Regina rolled her eyes and walked over to the doorway of her bedroom, saying, "Come on. Let's go watch Animal Planet."

It didn't take long for the two of them to fall asleep on the couch, leaning on each other. When they finally woke up again, it was to the sound of Regina's parents opening the front door around seven in the evening.

"Hey," Regina said quickly, scrambling to her feet as embarrassment washed over her, making her neck and cheeks red with warmth.

Her mother laughed and walked over, putting her hand on her daughter's shoulder.

"Relax, sweetheart. You're allowed to get comfortable. Your father and I were young lovers once too, you know. It's only natural to-"

"Mom!" the girl gasped. "We were only sleeping!"

"Well, if you were-"

"ANYWAY. How was your day?"

Desperately, Regina looked to her father to interject and ease the awkward moment, but her mother's smile didn't fade.

"Our days were fine, dear. What about yours? Did you two do anything fun, or did you silly girls simply nap all afternoon?"

"I, um… I was really tired after work," Emma cut in, standing beside her lover. "I didn't really mean to fall asleep. It just sort of happened."

"I imagine you were. Hopefully you feel better now. We're going to go ahead and make you ladies dinner."

"Mom, you really don't have to-" Regina tried to protest, but was quickly cut off.

"It's fine, dear. We like taking care of you two."

"Thank you, Mrs. Mills," the blonde offered with a gentle smile.

"You are very welcome. Both of you. Now go do something fun, and don't fall asleep again, or you won't be able to sleep tonight when it's bedtime!"

They both laughed at this and hurried up the stairs into Regina's bedroom.

"Sit in the fort with me?" Regina asked, positioning herself on the floor in front of the fort's entrance.

Emma nodded and followed the girl inside, then sat with her back against the wall. At first, Regina sat down beside her, but when her lover looked over at her with a smile, she repositioned herself so that she was sitting on the girl's lap, causing Emma to blush slightly as she felt the pressure of the brunette's back against her chest.

"Oh, yeah. Go ahead. Just get comfortable there. I'm just…. you know. Your friendly neighborhood chair," the blonde teased.

"Okay. I will."

With a grin, Regina grabbed the closest book she could reach, which was sitting on the floor beside them, and pushed it into Emma's hands.

"Read to me," she pleaded softly, squeezing the girl's forearm.

"Alright."

After flicking on the small nightlight they had in the makeshift tent, which was just enough light to see, she began to read. This continued until Regina's head fell back against the girl's shoulder, causing Emma to slowly trail off and go silent. Before either of them spoke again, the brunette pulled the book away from her and set it back on the floor, then took Emma's hands and placed them over her abdomen. When her lover didn't move, she pressed on the backs of her hands until finally, Emma began to slowly touch her stomach and sides. Regina let out a contented sigh and turned her head to slowly kiss the side of the blonde's neck.

"Ah… Hey… Don't do that…" Emma protested softly, but when she started to pull her hands away, her lover took them gently and slid them just slightly beneath the hem of her shirt.

"Relax," she whispered. "It's okay."

Heart racing – she could feel it slamming against her ribcage, trying to burst out of its prison – Emma allowed her thumbs to slowly rub small circles over the girl's smooth skin.

"I like that," Regina told her. "It's very…"

"Relaxing?"

"I was going to say 'arousing,' but I guess that works too."

Emma swallowed hard, feeling all of her muscles twitch.

"Does that bother you?" the brunette asked slowly, starting to sit up as she turned her head to look into her lover's eyes.

"N-No… I just…"

"You don't have to be scared to turn me on."

"What are you talking about?"

"I think you're all talk and no bite, darling. You act all flirty and lustful, but when it comes down to being intimate, you get scared."

"Regina, I…"

"Girls!" the brunette's mother called up the stairs, just in time to interrupt them. "Dinner time!"

With a sigh, Regina climbed off of the girl's lap and left the tent, heading down the stairs without waiting for Emma to follow her.

* * *

"Tomorrow, I'm going apartment hunting," Emma sighed as she made herself comfortable and pressed her lover into her side. "I feel horrible imposing on your parents like this."

"You really don't have to do that. You're not im-"

"I already made my decision, Regina. I told you. I'm not going to keep-"

"Emma, come on. Why are you so scared to just _be_ with me?"

"I'm not scared to be with you. I'm just… I want… I need independence, you know?"

With a reluctant nod of her head, Regina rolled onto her side, away from her lover, and rubbed her eyes.

"Gina, come on. Don't do that. I just-"

But when Emma touched the girl's side, the brunette quickly shoved her hand away.

"I get it. It's fine."

Sighing again, Emma remained on her back and shut her eyes.

* * *

"Well?" Regina asked, as soon as Emma walked through the front door the next evening. "How'd it go?"

"It went great, actually. I found an awesome place right near work, not too far from here either. I told the guy I'd send in my application tomorrow."

"Wait, what? What about… I mean… I thought…"

"What?"

"I just… I figured you'd want to show me before you… you know… made that kind of… um… decision…"

"Whoa. Regina. This isn't about you. This is about me. I have to do this by myself."

"Why, Emma?"

"Because I have to!"

"You don't have to do anything by yourself. I'm here for you, and I-"

"Look, just drop it, okay? You can swing by with me tomorrow when I drop off the app if you want. I want you to see it. I do. I just needed to make the choice on my own."

"Yeah. Okay."

* * *

"Well. You're all moved in. How do you feel?"

"Great, actually. I mean, I may have no furniture except a busted up old spring mattress, but it feels great to have a place of my own."

Regina nodded her head and looked around.

"It's a nice place, Emma. You picked a good one."

"And it was a good deal, too! Nothing's broken. Not a bad neighborhood. Just a little old and drafty is all. Hopefully, I'll be able to save up and get some furniture in here soon so you can actually come over and hang out here."

"Why wouldn't I hang out here now?"

"Are you kidding? There's nowhere to sit. There's no food in the fridge. It's-"

"Emma. I want to be wherever you are. I don't care if you have a nice couch or a kitchen table."

"Look, I should walk you home. It's getting late."

"Em…"

"What?"

"Please don't make me leave."

"Regina, this place is a mess right now. At least let me-"

"Let me stay with you."

With a sigh, Emma nodded her head and took her lover's hand, sitting on the mattress and tugging the girl down onto her lap. When she flopped over and pulled the smaller girl with her, Regina rolled and straddled the blonde's hips.

"Regina," Emma laughed, holding the girl's hips. "What are you doing?"

"Pinned ya!" the brunette cried, holding Emma's shoulders down against the mattress.

"Oh, no you don't!"

With that, Emma flipped them until the was the one pinning Regina down, but the girl quickly brought her knee up between her lover's legs, causing friction there that shocked the blonde so much that she froze, earning a grin from the brunette.

"Regina…" she breathed, looking serious.

"Come on, Em. I was just playing."

"It's not funny. That felt…"

"Good?"

"Well… Yes, but…"

"Why won't you just let me make you feel good?"

"Regina."

Staring up at her lover with intensity burning in her eyes, Regina slowly reached her hand between the blonde's legs and-

"Regina!"

"Em. Baby, come here."

Shaking her head vigorously, Emma pulled away.

"Not here. Not like this. Not on a busted up old mattress on the floor."

"Emma, why?"

"Because! I care about you. I want your first time to be perfect, and I-"

"Kiss me."

"Regina."

"Kiss me."

"I'm-"

"Shut. Up. And. Kiss me."

Unable to control the emotions that threatened to burst through her, Emma crashed their lips together, with passion at first, then slowed herself until she was gently sucking on her lover's tongue. When the brunette finally pulled away, Emma's heart sputtered.

"Em…"

"Yeah, baby?"

"I… I need to tell you something. And I don't want you to freak out, okay?"

"Okay…"

"Promise you won't freak out."

"I won't freak out."

"Promise."

"I promise! Just tell me!"

"I… I love you, Em…"

The blonde stared for a several silent moments, then slowly removed herself from pinning her lover to the mattress and rolled onto her side.

"I… I'm…" she finally started, but the rest of the words fell flat and disappeared as she dropped her gaze.

After a long while, Regina breathed, "Oh, my God…" her eyes watering as she realized that Emma wasn't going to respond. "Fuck."

Then, Regina was scrambling to her feet, and before Emma could reach for her hand to pull her back down, she was grabbing her jacket off the floor beside the mattress and making her way to the door.

"Regina, wait!" Emma finally cried, forcing the words out of her throat, even though they felt sticky and hot as they passed her lips.

But Regina was already outside, slamming the door behind her as she started to sob, feeling embarrassed and overwhelmed.


	11. Chapter 11: Making Up at the Hospital

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Prepare for angst!**

* * *

Emma's heart continued to pound heavily long after Regina was gone, but no matter how upset she felt, her own tears wouldn't come. Once the feelings finally welled up enough to burst inside her, she rolled onto her stomach and screamed into the only pillow on the bed. Still, the tears forming in her eyes refused to fall, and all she could feel was frustration and guilt. Her voice eventually became raw and her throat became sore from screaming, so she sat up, knelt in front of the pillow, and battered it with her fists, as hard as she could manage. When this provided no release, Emma found herself longing to self-destruct. Not wanting to damage the walls – which she knew she was capable of doing – she slammed her fists against the hardwood floor beside her bed until blood covered the backs of her hands. Only then did she start to cry.

In the morning, she checked her phone for any missed calls or messages and found none. Part of her wanted to text her lover, to apologize, to confess the love she undoubtedly felt for the girl, but she couldn't bring her fingers to type the message. She couldn't get the words out. All that day at work, she pictured the look of anxiety on Regina's face as she had made her confession. The pangs of guilt made her so nauseous that she spent nearly a quarter of her shift in the bathroom, dry heaving, since she hadn't eaten anything since the day before.

 _Just tell her you're sorry. Tell her you love her too,_ Emma kept thinking, but she couldn't push past the inhibiting part of her that was so terrified to become that vulnerable. Even though Regina had said it first, it was still too difficult to admit. Of course, she loved Regina. Of course she did. But saying it out loud? It made it too real. It was too much of a risk to commit with her words. It was why she'd needed to get her own apartment. To be on her own. To be independent. There was no way she was going to rely on anyone, not even the girl of her dreams who had never let her down.

Even though she was sure that Regina was too hurt and embarrassed to contact her, Emma continued to check her phone throughout the day. When there were still no messages by the end of her shift, she decided to let off some steam. Her way.

* * *

As soon as she pulled the can of red spray paint from her backpack, she felt the adrenaline rush through her, and any other emotions were quickly washed away, at least for the time being. The more she painted – mostly vulgar words and pictures – the more in control she felt. More importantly, she felt alive.

Of course, as is usually the case, at the worst possible moment, bright white, blue, and red lights flashed behind her, and as soon as she saw them reflected on the wall she was defacing, her heart stopped. _Oh, shit,_ she was thinking. _Seriously? Now? Of all the times to get caught, it had to be now?_

Up until that point, she'd been extremely lucky and had avoided any kind of criminal record. Getting caught red-handed vandalizing a public building… That was new.

* * *

"Stupid punks like you who can't even graduate from high school are the reason I hate my job," the cop grumbled as he pushed her into the holding cell at the county jail.

Part of Emma wanted to shoot back with a wisecrack, to say something obscene and offensive, but the adrenaline had worn off, her thoughts had floated back to her undoubtedly broken-hearted lover, and her lack of energy prevented her from speaking.

"Any particular reason you were defacing public property at three in the morning?" the cop sighed, staring her down for an answer but not expecting to receive one.

All Emma could manage was, "I want a lawyer."

"Seriously, kid? I just caught you red-handed. Your prints are all over that spray paint can. You couldn't have incriminated yourself more even if you wrote your own frickin' name on the wall."

Instead of replying, Emma sat down on the bench and dropped her head into her hands.

* * *

Given that she was still only 17, she knew the jail would call her parents whether she wanted them to or not. She also knew they wouldn't show up to bail her out. They were probably thanking their lucky stars that she wasn't their problem anymore. But she wasn't going to use her one phone call to reach Regina, or the girl's parents. She was only in her cell for three days before pleading guilty in front of a judge. Luckily for Emma, her crime did not warrant her being sent to a juvenile detention center. Instead, she was sentenced to six months of probation and 100 hours of community service.

By the time she was finally able to check her phone, she no longer felt hopeful that there would be a message from Regina. In fact, she hoped there wouldn't be one. The last thing she needed was for Regina to find out what had happened.

"God," Emma groaned, slamming the back of her head against the wall as soon as she entered her apartment. "She must fucking hate me. Why couldn't I just say it? Why can't I just-"

Being the most inconvenient moment to receive a phone call, she heard her phone ring. She half expected it to be her own parents, but was especially surprised to find 'Mrs. Mills' appearing on the screen.

"Shit!" she cursed, staring down at the phone as it blared its ringtone and vibrated in her hand. "Fuck!" After a short but intense internal debate about whether to answer the phone or not, she picked up the call and said, "Hi, Mrs. Mills."

"Emma! Oh, thank God you answered! I was worried about you. Where've you been? Are you alright?"

 _Regina hasn't told them?_ Emma wondered, surprised at Mrs. Mills' concerned and gentle tone.

"I'm… I'm okay."

"Are you sure? You sound-"

"Yes, ma'am. I'm fine," the girl lied, then slammed the back of her head against the wall again.

"Emma… What's going on? Did something happen?"

"I…"

"It's okay, sweetie. You can tell me. Regina won't say a word, but it's been quite some time since we've seen you, and I'm so worried. She's been so upset, but she won't talk to me."

"Is she okay?" Emma blurted without thinking then mentally slapped herself for asking.

"You two haven't spoken, then."

"N-No…"

"Every couple has fights, Emma. It doesn't have to mean-"

"Please, Mrs. Mills. I… I don't know what to say."

"I'm not trying to intrude, dear. I'm just concerned about both of you. You make her so happy, you know. She… She loves you, Emma."

"I know," Emma sighed sadly, thinking of all the ways she'd disappointed the girl. "I know."

She wanted to say, 'I love her too,' but once again, the words refused to surface.

"Listen… I won't keep bothering you. I'll give you your space. But please, Emma… Call me if you need anything. Anything at all. Regina doesn't have to know. If you're in trouble, please come to me. Henry and I care about you, even if the two of you aren't…"

"Thank you, Mrs. Mills. I really appreciate it. I'll be okay, though. And I'm sure Regina will be alright too."

"I hope so. She's certainly not the same without you around."

"Goodnight, Mrs. Mills."

"Emma?"

"Yeah?"

"You're a good girl. Whatever happened between you two… I'm sure you two can work it out, if you want to."

"Thank you," was all Emma could manage.

* * *

When Emma's phone rang again three days later, she was surprised once again to find Mrs. Mills' name on her screen.

"Hey, Mrs. Mills. How are-"

"Emma, I know I said I wouldn't bother you, but Regina's in the hospital. She had a really awful fall down the stairs and split her head nearly open. She's been in and out of consciousness, but every time she fades again, she keeps saying your name."

"Oh, my God. What did the doctors say? Is she going to be alright?"

"They say she'll be okay, as long as she keeps waking up. They're worried, though, so they won't send her home yet. That's not the point, though, Emma. When she wakes, she won't talk to us, and when she sleeps, all she wants is you. I don't know what happened between you, but whatever it is, even if you two don't stay together, you need to work it out. She needs closure."

"I can't, Mrs. Mills," Emma choked, her voice cracking. "I-"

"Please, Emma. Please. I love my daughter, and she's in critical condition right now. She needs to see you. Please. I just need to see her happy again. Please, just talk to her."

"I'll be right there."

* * *

Emma's breath caught in her chest as soon as she stepped into Regina's hospital room and saw the girl laying on the gurney. She was asleep, luckily, and her mother was sitting right by her side.

"Emma," the older woman said, rising from her chair and taking Emma's hands. "Thank you so much."

"I care about your daughter," the blonde said quietly, fighting back tears.

It was the deepest she could go without breaking, so she turned and looked at Regina to avoid her gaze.

When Emma stepped closer and put her hand on the bedrail, the girl stirred and squirmed under the sheets.

"Emma," she whimpered. "I'm sorry."

 _Oh, my God,_ Emma was thinking. _**She's**_ _sorry? What for?_

At first, she couldn't speak, but when Regina said her name again, Mrs. Mills gave her a gentle push to move her forward.

With a sigh, Emma touched the girl's hand, which was clenched into a fist, and whispered, "It's okay, Gina. You're gonna be okay."

As soon as Regina subconsciously registered her lover's voice, her eyes shot open.

With no concept of the things she'd been saying in her sleep, the brunette sat up and gaped, "What are you doing here?"

"You were hurt. I just wanted to make sure you were-"

"How did you even know?" Regina demanded, then instantly shot her gaze in her mother's direction. "Mom! Why? I'm… I'm f-f-"

Falling back against the pillows as a wave of dizziness struck her, the girl trailed off and shut her eyes.

"Regina," Emma breathed, resting her palm gently against her lover's forehead, without any thought of the consequences.

"D-Don't," Regina whimpered, breaking from the touch and beginning to cry.

After Mrs. Mills had silently slipped out of the room, Emma's own tears started to fall as she removed her hand and managed to choke out a broken, "I'm sorry."

"You should go."

"Regina, I-"

"No, really. I get it. I do. You felt obligated because she called you and pressured you into-"

"No. I just wanted to make sure you were okay. I…"

"You should go."

"Regina, please."

"What? You want to talk now? After days and days of _nothing?_ " When Emma remained silent, Regina added, "Seriously. I get it. Just go." Swallowing hard as she turned around, Emma began to walk away, but before she could make it to the door, Regina let out a strangled sob and cried, "Emma." The blonde immediately turned to face her, but it took Regina another minute to continue and finally ask through tears, "Why?"

"W-Why what?" Emma stammered.

"Why would you treat me like that if you didn't love me?"

"I…"

"Why _don't_ you love me? What is it about me that's so-"

"Regina, wait. I-"

"Is it because I didn't want you to steal shit? Is it because I pressured you into-"

"No! Regina, stop. It's not you. I just can't. I can't."

"I thought we were happy," the brunette sobbed, sitting up and dropping her head into her hands. "I was so happy. And I thought that you… that you were too…"

"I was! Regina, it's not what you think. Please, please believe me. I just… I can't… commit…"

"But you did commit!" Regina cried. "You said you wanted me to be your girl, and that there was no one else you wanted to be with! Why would you say that if it wasn't true? Why wouldn't you just _fuck off_ and leave me alone?"

"It was true! It _is_ true! Regina, I just can't… I can't do the whole… _love_ thing…"

"What is it about me that's not good enough for you?"

"Please, stop. It's nothing like that. My parents raised me to believe that I was scum. I've always been treated like scum. You're the only one who's ever made me feel… like I was more than a piece of trash. But I just can't let myself... I can't give myself to you and just wait for you to change your mind about me."

"I'm not going to change my mind about you! There's nothing you could possibly do that would… would…"

"Hey, hey. Easy," Emma urged her, catching her head as she started to fall backwards, hit by another wave of dizziness.

"D-Don't touch me."

"Regina-"

"It's confusing, okay? You need to just leave."

"I got arrested."

" _What?!_ "

"I got arrested for vandalism."

"Emma! Why didn't you call me!"

"Because I know I broke your heart."

This rendered the brunette silent as she rolled onto her side, facing away from the blonde.

"See?" Emma pressed. "I knew you'd change your mind."

"I haven't," Regina said simply, not moving.

"What?"

"Just tell me why. What happened?"

"I was upset, and I didn't know how else to vent my frustration. It's just what I do, Regina. I'm a fuck up. You need someone who-"

"No," Emma's lover countered, finally rolling over onto her back. "I need you."

"I can't," Emma cried, her tears coming harder and faster as she backed away from the bed.

"I'm not going to leave you or change my mind. I hadn't before, I'm not now, and I never will."

"Regina. You deserve better, and I'll just disappoint you."

"I'm such an idiot! I really thought… I thought… that maybe… maybe you could love me too. But obviously, I was wrong, and you're going to fucking leave me here like this, completely broken."

"Regina…"

"Stop saying my fucking name!"

"Why?"

"Because I love when you say it," Regina sobbed. "I love the sound of it when it's coming from you. It gives me butterflies, and I… I can't take it. I can't stand to be in love with you anymore, when I know you're not in love with me."

"Fuck!" Emma shouted, turning around and dropping to her knees. "I _am,_ Regina! God dammit!"

"What…?"

"I'm so broken and fucked up. I didn't say it because… because if I said it, it would be real, and there'd be no turning back, and I _knew_ I'd get my heart broken if I admitted it. I wanted to. I did. I just… _couldn't._ "

"You're not fucked up…" Emma went silent, though, and didn't respond, so Regina added, "If you love me, don't leave me. Trust me. Trust me not to change my mind."

"I do love you," Emma told her, rising to her feet again, stepping towards the bed, and taking her lover's hand. "I love you. I'm just so fucking scared."

"It's okay to be scared. I'm scared too. But I love you so much that I'm willing to put everything on the line for you."

"When did you know?"

"Know what?"

"That you loved me."

Wiping her eyes, Regina let out a soft chuckle and answered, "When I called you Emma Mills, after you said you didn't want your family's name anymore. I was in love with you way before that, though. That's just what it took for me to realize it."

"B-Before that…?"

"Yeah. I think so."

"When, then?"

"Pretty sure it was in the ambulance to the hospital that I really fell in love with you. When you looked at me with those sad, scared eyes and let me put my hand on your shoulder."

"What? Really?"

"Yeah… Really. Aw, fuck, my head hurts."

"Honey," Emma whispered, gently cradling the girl's head as she placed a chaste kiss on her forehead. "What can I get you? Do you need the nurse?"

"No. I just need you."

* * *

The next night, the doctors discharged Regina and sent her home. Once they were all back at the Mills' residence, the family made her comfortable on the couch, and Emma sat down on the floor beside her.

"Get up here," Regina chuckled. "You're not sitting on the floor."

"You need space to stretch out, and I-"

"It's so good to see you girls together again," Regina's mother cut in, after reappearing in the entryway to the living room. Emma blushed lightly and looked away before the woman added, "Why don't you two go upstairs and get some rest? I'm sure you need it, Regina."

"But I just got comfortable," Regina protested with a smile.

Emma laughed and reached for her hand, saying, "I'll carry you, princess."

"Oh, no you won't. I can walk just-"

But before she could finish, she was being scooped up into Emma's strong arms and cradled against the girl's chest.

"Make sure she doesn't get up and try to do anything, okay?" Regina's mother asked Emma.

The blonde nodded and carried the girl up the stairs and into the bedroom, kicking the door shut behind her.

"You okay, champ?" she asked, gently laying Regina down on the bed.

Regina nodded before her head hit the pillow and she said, "Lay down with me. I don't want to sleep without you next to me."

With a slow nod, Emma climbed into the bed beside her lover and rolled onto her side to curl around the girl's body. The brunette smiled sleepily and surprised Emma by gently gripping her thigh and pulling it up so that the girl's leg was draped over her own.

"Hey…" Emma started, but felt herself grow warm as her body got closer to Regina's.

"What?"

"N-Nothing… It just… feels good."

"I like when you're close to me. You're warm."

After a pause, Emma sighed, "I'm so glad you're okay."

"And I'm so glad you're not in jail."

Hearing this, the blonde scowled and sat back up, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Not funny."

"Not laughing."

"I've got a criminal record now. Isn't that kind of a deal-breaker?"

"What? No way. It's kind of a turn-on. You're a badass."

With a laugh, Emma rolled her eyes and gently nudged the girl's shoulder, saying, "Hardly."

They lay like that for quite some time before Emma fell asleep, with Regina tangling her fingers in her hair. She woke in the middle of the night when Regina shifted her weight and started to roll over, but couldn't because of the weight of Emma's thigh over her leg. Opening her eyes, the brunette let out a heavy sigh.

"Hey," Emma whispered, when she realized that Regina was actually awake. "You okay?" Regina nodded her head in the dark, but because Emma couldn't see it, she pressed, "Babe?"

"Yeah. I'm okay."

"What's the matter?"

"I just feel… I don't know. My head doesn't feel dizzy anymore, but now it's full of stressful thoughts and I can't shut it off."

"Why, though, honey? What are you thinking about?"

"How I'm worried about you. How I don't want you to get hurt."

"What? Where is this coming from?"

"What if you broke in somewhere and some guy fucking shot you? Which he has every right to do on his own property if he mistakes you as someone breaking in to hurt him."

"Regina."

"Seriously, Emma! And what if you get arrested again and lose your job? What if-"

"I won't, okay? Is that what you want to hear?"

"Yes," Regina replied calmly. "That's what I want to hear."

"I thought you said it was badass."

"It is, Em, but… but I care about you, and it's not a joke. Yes, it's hot that you have a blatant disregard for the law and do whatever the hell you want and can beat the living shit out of pretty much anyone. But I care about you, and that means I'm worried about the day that this lifestyle stops working out for you. It's already starting to catch up with you, and I'm scared it's going to get worse."

"Well… I…"

With a heavy sigh, Regina shut her eyes again, saying, "I'm sorry. I'm not trying to stress you out. I woke up and that's what immediately popped into my head. I don't know why. I'm sorry."

"You don't have to be sorry. It's okay. I get it. It's just hard for me to change who I am, you know? I wish I could say I learned my lesson, but honestly… I didn't care if I got caught that time. I was upset, and I felt the need to act out. It didn't matter to me if I got arrested. You were pissed and hurt and not speaking to me, so I didn't care."

"You can't base your life decisions on me and what I think or do."

"Sure I can."

"Okay. Fine. Then stop doing illegal shit that's going to get you hurt or killed or arrested again. How's that?"

"Is that an order, Sarg?"

"Ha-ha. Very funny."

"Guess you get the whole giving-military-orders thing from your dad, huh?"

"Stop it. I was trying to make a point. If you're really so concerned with what I think and do and feel, then you'll stop this. If not for yourself, for me."

"You need to relax and stop worrying about me getting hurt, okay? I'm not the one who took a tumble down the stairs, am I?"

Regina scowled and gave Emma's shoulder a hard shove, saying, "You're a twatwaffle."

"Oooh. Big kid words!"

"Emma!"

"Regina!"

"Stop it. It's not funny. Besides, I feel fine now. I didn't get shot or killed or hit with a baseball bat."

"Well, hey. You know somethin'? It might get me hurt, but it's a great way to pick up chicks!"

"Again, very funny."

"Well, it's how I got you, right?"

"I mean… I guess so."

"And you're the only chick I ever want to pick up. So it works out."

"Then it's safe to say you can stop now."

"Alright… Ya got me there."

"I know."

"Now, go back to sleep, okay? You need your rest. I know you said your head doesn't hurt anymore, but I'm worried about you, and-"

"Hold me, okay?"

Emma didn't have to be told twice. She wrapped her arms around her lover gently and curled back into her side, resting her head on the girl's shoulder.

Before they fell back to sleep, she whispered, "Always."


	12. Chapter 12: An Old Friend

Emma was woken by the sound of her phone buzzing on the nightstand next to the bed. When she leaned over to grab it and dismiss whatever notification was popping up, she woke Regina as well. By the time Emma leaned back against the pillows, her lover could see the blatant look of discomfort and surprise on her face.

"Babe? What is it?" the brunette questioned anxiously. "Are you okay?"

"I, um…"

"Emma?"

"It's… I'm okay."

"What's the matter?"

"I… I just got a text from an…uh… old friend. Who I haven't spoken to in like two years. She moved to Canada with her family after our sophomore year of high school, right after we had a falling out, and we never really made up."

"Okay… Then what does she want?"

"Apparently, she's back in the area. She wants to see me."

"You don't want to see her?"

"Well, we didn't exactly end on good terms."

Regina paused, studying her girlfriend's face.

Eventually, she asked, "Do you want to tell me what happened?"

"Not really," Emma answered quickly, shaking her head and looking away. It didn't take long for her to continue talking, though, before Regina had a chance to reply, as she said, "We used to hook up, okay? We weren't… like… a thing, or anything. We just… messed around. But when things started to get more serious, I thought… I thought she felt the same about me, and she told me she did. That flew out the window really fast when I found out she was sleeping with one of my friends too."

"Oh, shit."

"Yeah. Anyway, we had a lot of fun together, and I guess I should be grateful for the good times." Then, Emma started to chuckle and told Regina, "I remember this one time, we broke into the abandoned paper mill on Central Street… I guess some people walking by heard us shooting cans with our BB guns and called the police. We ended up running from the cops. It was kind of hilarious. As soon as we made it to the woods, I tripped over a little tree stump and busted up my leg pretty bad. We told my mom we went swimming in the brook and I slipped. She bought it, but I wasn't even wet. God, we laughed so fucking hard when we went back up to my room."

Hearing her lover reminisce about fond memories with another girl made Regina feel uneasy, but the last thing she wanted was for Emma to keep things from her. Especially if this former friend was suddenly texting her looking to rekindle their connection.

"That… That sounds great. I'm sorry you two had a falling out." After a silent pause, Regina continued, "How do you feel about her texting you now? Do you want to see her?"

With a sigh, Emma replied, "I don't know. I honestly don't know."

Looking a little confused, Regina put her hand on Emma's shoulder and asked, "What did she say exactly? I mean… if you want to tell me. I don't mean to pry."

"It was really weird, actually. She sort of acted like nothing ever happened. The text says, 'Hey, babe. Back in Storybrooke. Would love to see you.'"

"Wow. That is… kind of weird… if you ended on a bad note. Um… So… What are you going to say?"

"I guess… I guess I should probably at least see what she wants."

Offering a weak nod, Regina looked up at the ceiling and sighed softly.

"Babe?" Emma asked. "What's the matter?"

"Huh? Nothing. I just… It's nothing."

"No, honestly, what's the matter?"

"I guess it's just… I mean… You said you two used to hook up… and that you had feelings for her. I…"

"Oh, honey," the blonde said softly, leaning over to cup the girl's face in her hands. "That was literally years ago. I'm over it. You're everything I could ever dream of."

Biting her lip, the girl's lover looked into her eyes, until she leaned in and kissed Regina's lips.

"I love you," Emma told her, stroking Regina's hair. "So much."

Later that day, after agreeing upon a time to meet her former companion, Emma stood in the doorway of the house and kissed her girlfriend again.

"I'll see you later, okay? I won't stay out too late, and I'll keep working on the lawn tomorrow."

"I'm not worried about the lawn."

"I know. I was just-"

But Emma was cut off by another kiss, which caused a smile to spread over her lips.

"I love you," the blonde told her lover, running her fingers through the girl's hair.

"I love you too. I'll see you later. Text me when you're on the way back?"

"Yeah, I will. Bye, babe."

* * *

"Um… Hi, Ruby," Emma greeted her former companion, glancing shyly at the girl sitting in the seat in the back of the local café.

"Wow," the girl said softly, rising from her seat. "You look incredible."

"I… Um…"

"Your muscles have definitely gotten bigger." When Emma simply stared at her, watching her smile widen, Ruby asked, "What's the matter, champ? Cat got your tongue?"

"N-No. I just… It's just weird to see you, after so long."

Suddenly serious, Ruby replied, "In a good way or a bad way?"

"I don't know, honestly."

With a sigh, Ruby told Emma, "Listen, I know things ended badly with us… and I'm sorry. It really was completely my fault. But I've missed you, Emma. I've missed hanging out with you. Causing trouble with you."

This earned a smile from the blonde as she sat down at the table across from where Ruby had been sitting.

"So how've you been?" Ruby finally asked, after taking a quiet moment to look the girl over.

"I've been really good, actually. Couple bumps in the road. Actually got arrested for the first time. But… I've got a really good thing going with a girl I went to school with, and she's… She's amazing."

Raising an eyebrow, Ruby commented, "You're going steady? I'm surprised."

"Why?"

"Not exactly your gig, Em. You're more of the, uh… fuck-and-run type."

"Excuse me?"

The anger that flashed over Emma's face was a warning to the girl across from her, and Ruby understood it all too well.

"Listen, I didn't mean… I just meant… I'm sorry. I've just never known you to be the type for commitment."

"Except with you, you mean."

"That was… I…"

"You were different. Yes. But I got over you and the bullshit you put me through, and you're right, other than you, I've always been the type to keep my distance. Still, I think 'fuck-and-run' is a little harsh."

"It is. I'm really sorry. I was projecting on you, honestly, 'cause that's how I am, and I know it. I'm sorry."

Emma's eyes widened as she looked at her former friend and found sincerity in her eyes. The confession was a surprising one. Something she never would have expected from Ruby.

"It's always worked for you, though. You've always been happy with it. It never worked for me. It just left me feeling empty. Now, I feel… whole."

"Wow, Em. This girl must really be something special for you to talk like that."

A smile spread across the blonde's lips as she replied, "She is."

When she noticed Ruby biting her lip, Emma asked, "What?"

"Nothing. I just… I think about you a lot, Emma. All the mistakes I've made. But of everything I've ever done… of all the people I turned my back on… you're the only one I regret losing. I made a big mistake, letting you go. And sleeping with Belle… I…"

"I know it wasn't just Belle, Ruby. Don't pretend like she was the exception."

"Em…"

"You were sleeping with Peter too."

"Emma. Look… I'm really sorry. I really am."

"That doesn't change anything, Ruby. It does make me feel better to know that you regret it, though, honestly. It's kinda like sweet revenge, in a way. I don't want you to suffer or anything… I just wanted you to understand what you did to me."

"I loved you, Em. I just… didn't know how to show it," Ruby told her sadly. "I still do love you."

Eyes widening again, Emma sat up a little straighter and gripped the edge of the table until her knuckles turned white.

The silence didn't last long before Ruby cleared her throat and asked, "So how'd you and this lady get involved? Blind date? Ad in the paper? Woman seeks woman who likes long walks on the beach? Cause I know you sure as shit weren't looking for a tutor."

The brunette forced a smile, even though she was clearly uncomfortable on the inside.

"I broke into her house, actually," Emma chuckled. "She hit me in the head with a metal baseball bat."

"Are you serious?"

"Yep."

"God, you're such a hoodlum!" Ruby was grinning as she added, "I'm proud of you! But wait… How the hell did that end up getting you the girl? I mean, you broke into the chick's house and she realized how stunning you are, or…?"

A light blush rose to Emma's cheeks as she looked away and shook her head, saying, "No. She took me to the hospital. She felt guilty, so she started spending time with me. She took care of me while I was healing. Made sure I put ice on my head… Made sure I woke up every few hours when I got back from the hospital with a concussion. She's an angel, honestly."

"An angel with a strong swing, apparently, if she put your tough ass in the hospital."

"Oh, yeah. Definitely. She can swing a bat."

Ruby laughed at this and said, "Sounds like you found yourself a real catch."

"Yeah, I did. She's perfect for me."

"And she's okay with you… you know… being such a hood rat?"

Emma's face drained of color as she looked back up at her former friend.

"Is that what you really think of me, Ruby?"

"Hey, listen… I just meant-"

"I know what you meant. Listen, I'm gonna go. It was good seeing you, but… I…"

"Emma, wait," Ruby protested, grabbing the girl's hand as she started to stand. "I'm sorry. I'm an idiot. I didn't mean it like that. I was really just teasing… and you always used to say that yourself…"

"I said it because everyone else said it. I believed it because everyone else believed it. Even my own parents."

"Is… Is your dad still…"

"No. I mean, yes. Well… I moved out. You know they've known I was gay, but… They totally fell in love with Regina when they met at the hospital. When they found out we were going steady, they flipped a shit and told me to break up with her or move out. So I moved out."

"You moved in with your girl?"

"No. I mean, I stay with her a lot, but I have my own apartment now. Almost lost it when I got arrested, but her parents bailed me out."

"Wow. Sounds like they like you. And they know you two are together?"

"Yep. Regina wasn't out yet, but when they found out, they were all for it. Honestly, I thought her dad was gonna shoot me. He's an ex-marine, so…"

"Once a marine, always a marine," Ruby laughed. "Glad you didn't get your neck snapped."

"He definitely could have done it with his bare hands if he wanted to. I mean, he's… bigger, now that he's out of the military. But I definitely wouldn't fuck with him."

"I'm really happy for you, Em…" There was a pause before she continued, "So, what'd you get arrested for anyway? Grand theft auto? Breaking and entering? Burglary? Do her parents know this all started when you broke into their house?"

"Defacing public property, actually. Totally went to town on a building with some spray paint after Regina and I had a really big… I don't know what to call it… It wasn't a fight, really. It was just… We just stopped… I don't know. Anyway, we obviously made up after I got out. She was pissed when she found out what happened. But… I don't know. I just didn't care, ya know? Like, if she wasn't going to talk to me again, what did it matter what I was gonna do with my life? And no, they don't know what happened that night."

"Wow, Em… That's… You've gone a bit soft, aye?"

"Hey, shut up. I'm not soft! I just don't like upsetting her!"

In response, Ruby laughed and mimed the motion of cracking a whip, complete with sound effects.

"Knock it off, Ruby!"

"Whiiiiipped!"

"I am not!"

"Oh, yeah?"

"Yeah!"

Although Emma had committed to her lover that she was done with her blatant disregard for the law, the desire to maintain her reputation suddenly flooded her, and to her surprise, she let it win out over her desire to please Regina.

"Prove it."

"How?"

"Let's go out tonight."

"And… do… what, exactly?"

"Whatever you want. Rock a little B and E action. Deface the town hall with spray-painted penises. We could even rob a liquor store."

Emma was clearly surprised at this, and she couldn't quite tell if the girl was serious or not.

"What's the matter?" Ruby asked. "Too whipped to maintain your rep? Too scared to do what _you_ want? Too pussy to feel that rush again? I'm positive you miss it. I know you, Em. It's always been part of you, just like it's always been part of me."

"That's… I'm not…"

"I miss us, Em. I miss being partners in crime. I miss having fun and feeling that high with you."

"Listen, Ruby. Regina means the world to me, we've got a good thing going, and I'm _not_ gonna fuck that up."

"Pussyyy," the brunette taunted, grinning at Emma. Then, her tone lowered as she offered, "She doesn't have to know."

"Ruby, you and I… We're over. You blew your chance. You could have had me. I would have given you anything you wanted. I would have done anything for you. I would've gone to jail for you. I almost did, remember? But you threw that away. You trashed what we had and tossed it like a dirty jizz rag."

"Emma, I'm sorry! I was young. It was fucking sophomore year, okay? None of it meant anything to me, except you. I just didn't have the maturity to-"

"Look. I'll go out tonight. Just to prove you wrong about me. But nothing's going to happen between us. Not ever."

Ruby hesitated before replying, "I know. I can tell you're in love with this girl. You light up when you talk about her. I just wish I could see you light up when you talk about us again."

"I idolized you. I worshipped you. I-"

"Emma, please. Regardless of how you feel about us now, please just accept the apology. It's genuine, and I mean it. It's been a long time coming. I'm also sorry I didn't say it before now. I guess I was too scared to reach out from a thousand miles away. I wanted to say it to your face, and I never thought I'd get the chance."

"I accept the apology, but I'm never going to forget what you did to me. What you did to us."

"I know. I don't expect you to." After another awkward pause, Ruby added, "So, I'll see you tonight then?"

"Yeah. Tonight around nine? Back here at the café?"

"Deal."

When they shook on it, Ruby's fingertips lingered over Emma's palm as she slowly pulled her hand away.

* * *

Of course, Emma sent Regina a message when she was on the way home, as promised. When she arrived at the girl's house, Regina threw her arms around Emma and squeezed her in a tight embrace.

After the embrace ended, several moments later, the brunette asked nervously, "How'd it go?"

"It was… I don't know. We're, uh… We're going out tonight."

"What…?"

"We're going out later."

"Um…"

"Is that… Is that bad?"

"No! No. I just… I'm surprised. I mean, you just saw her for the first time in two years, and now you're going out again already. It just seems…"

"Are you upset?"

"No!"

"Are you jealous?"

"No!"

"Alright. Good. I don't want to upset you."

"You're… You're not…"

With a soft sigh, Emma leaned in and kissed the girl on the lips, then pulled away, saying, "I love you."

"I love you too, baby."

"Do you, um… Do you want to go upstairs?"

Raising an eyebrow, Regina nodded her head slowly.

Once upstairs, Emma immediately pushed the bedroom door closed and put her hands on Regina's hips, walking her backwards until the girl was sitting on the bed. Just as the brunette was about to open her mouth to speak, Emma pressed their lips together and straddled her hips.

"I love you," Emma whispered, lowering her lips to Regina's neck.

"Babe… What are you-"

"Shh. Kiss me."

Regina did as she was told, unsure as to where all the lustful energy was coming from but enjoying the sensations she was feeling as Emma's hands moved over her sides. It didn't take long for her to start moaning into the kiss, earning a smile from her lover.

Finally, Regina breathed, "Emma, wait-"

"What is it, baby? Don't you-"

"I'm… I'm getting…"

Tilting her head, Emma asked, "Huh?"

"You're making me… um… We should stop, before I-"

"Making you what, babe?"

"Wet, Emma," Regina replied, blushing brightly. "You're making me wet."

Grinning in response to this new information, the blonde kissed her lover's lips again and gave the girl's thighs a gentle squeeze.

"I'm sorry," Emma said, as Regina pushed her away gently. "I was just-"

"I want… I want to make love to you."

"Regina. No. Not now. Not yet."

"Then stop fucking teasing me!"

"I'm sorry! I got carried away, and then you… You said you were wet, and I just got… I got so turned on…"

Again, Regina blushed and lowered her head, looking anywhere but into Emma's eyes.

"Babe?" Emma asked softly, gently stroking the girl's hair.

"We need to stop, okay? Like, now. Before I shove you onto this bed and tear your clothes off."

"Okay. I'm sorry."

Reluctantly, Emma pulled away and sat beside her lover on the bed, not touching her at all.

"We should get dinner."

The blonde only replied with a nod.

* * *

"I'll probably be back late," Emma told Regina, looking into her lover's eyes as she stood in the doorway.

"Oh… Okay…"

"I love you, alright?"

"Yeah. I love you too."

With a weak smile, Emma kissed the girl's forehead and left the house feeling both nervous and apprehensive about the potential events of the evening.


	13. Chapter 13: Forgiveness

When Emma reached the downtown area, Ruby was waiting for her in front of the café.

"Hey, kid," she greeted Emma with a smile. "You ready to cause some trouble?"

"What are we doing, then?"

"Like I said, whatever you want. I know you love the breaking and entering gig."

"I…"

Emma slowly looked away, feeling ashamed of her less-than-lawful tendencies for the first time. She was thinking of Regina. Thinking of how disappointed she'd be if she found out. But at the same time, this was something she had to do. She had to prove to Ruby – and herself – that she hadn't gone soft. Even if she was going to make better choices in her life, it didn't mean she had to be soft. She could still maintain her rep and be a good girlfriend at the same time.

Right?

"Hey. You with me?" Ruby pressed, putting her hand on Emma's shoulder.

The blonde just nodded and asked, "Where to?"

"I dunno. Mifflin Street is always a score."

Face draining of color, Emma quickly blurted, "No. Not Mifflin."

"Jeez. Alright. Sixth Street then. Those houses are pretty big."

"Yeah. Fine."

As they approached the back door of the first house, which was completely dark, Ruby was grinning. Emma, on the other hand, was wearing her distress on her face.

"What's the matter, Champ?" the brunette asked with confidence. "Gettin' cold feet?"

"What? No! I'm just… No. Just shut up and pick the lock."

Just as Ruby was inserting a paperclip into the keyhole, though, Emma saw the sticker on the window of the door that informed her that the house was protected with an electronic security system.

"Ruby, wait!" she hissed, jerking back on the girl's shoulder. "It's rigged."

"Fuck!" Ruby cursed, straightening up and looking around. "No video cameras though. Just electronic locks on the doors and windows. Whatever. Let's find another-"

"I can hack it."

"What?"

"I said, 'I can hack it.'"

"Seriously?"

"Yeah. Killian taught me."

"Wow. Alright. Do it, then, hot shot."

After much careful maneuvering, Emma disabled the alarm and slowly opened the door.

"Jack the jewels and get out?" Ruby asked with a grin.

Emma nodded, suddenly unable to contain the rush she felt as she stepped silently into the quiet house.

They didn't steal much. Instead, they took a few small, valuable items and left the house quickly. Given that it had been so long since she'd felt that level of adrenaline, Emma's head was spinning. Once they were safe outside, Emma re-enabled the alarm system. A few blocks down, they sat on the curb and looked at each other.

"You're sweating," Ruby commented with a satisfied smile, wiping some stray hair out of her partner's face. "Fun, right?"

Emma blushed and nodded.

"You missed it, didn't you?" the brunette asked, her smile turning into a smirk. When Emma didn't answer, she added, "Guess you're not so soft after all. Wanna hit another?"

After a moment of hesitation, Emma shook her head, saying, "I should get back. It's late."

"Aww, c'mon. Don't be such a pussy-whipped bitch."

"Listen, I told you to fucking stop that!"

"What are you gonna do about it if I don't, hot shot?"

As if she wasn't enraged enough, Emma's blood began to boil when the grin on Ruby's face seemed to grow nearly tenfold.

"Shut the fuck up, Ruby. I'm warning you."

"What are you gonna do? Hit me?"

"Ruby…"

"C'mon, then. Show me what you've got. Those muscles have grown since I last-"

She was quickly cut off by Emma's palms shoving against her shoulders, pushing her backwards until she fell over. When Emma stood up and glared down at her, she simply smiled back.

"Now, that's what I'm talkin' about. _That_ is sexy."

"I'm leaving," Emma said shortly, turning to walk away.

"Hey, wait!" Ruby cried, jumping to her feet and grabbing the girl's hand. "We had fun, didn't we? I was just playin' around. You know I love to get you riled up."

"That's enough, Ruby! Yes, it was fun. And we're done now. So I'm leaving. That's it."

Looking surprised, Ruby sounded concerned as she asked, "Well… Do I get to see you again?"

Emma hesitated before answering, "I don't think it's a good idea."

"Come on, Em. Why not? I know you had fun with me tonight."

"Yeah. And that's it. That's all it was. A little bit of fun. And I'm done now, so I'm leaving."

"Fine. Your loss, kid. We make a good team."

Shaking her head, Emma turned and walked away.

* * *

"Where the hell did you go that you're soaked in sweat?" Regina asked her lover, as soon as she walked in the door.

"What? Nowhere. I'm not… I'm fine."

"I didn't say you weren't fine. I said you're sweaty as hell," the brunette retorted seriously. "And what do you mean 'nowhere?'"

"I mean nowhere. Let's drop it, okay?"

"Are you serious right now? You're gonna lie to me and then tell me to drop it?"

Emma felt her own lie hit her like a falling anvil.

"I'm not… I… I just…"

"I think you should leave, Emma. And when you're ready to tell me what the hell you've been doing, call me."

"Regina, come on. We were just…"

"I trust you, Emma. I do. But now you're standing here, refusing to tell me what you two were doing, and it looks _really_ bad."

"Gina, I… I would never cheat on you. Please, don't think that."

"Then why are you hiding whatever you were doing?"

"I'm…"

When Emma couldn't finish the sentence, Regina sighed and held the front door open.

"Get out, okay? I'm not going to fight with you."

Heart dropping as she nodded weakly, Emma turned and left the house.

* * *

Back at her apartment, Emma cracked open a beer and sat down on the mattress that was still set up on the floor without a box spring. Crossing her legs, she looked out the window. The view was less than scenic. The apartment was in a shitty part of town. She hadn't minded or even considered it when she'd signed the lease, really, but suddenly, sitting alone in the nearly empty apartment, she felt a wave of guilt wash over her as she realized that it probably wasn't the safest place for a young woman to walk around, especially at night. This wouldn't have bothered her, except that she felt badly for exposing her lover to the potentially hazardous situation.

"The fuck," she cursed. "How could I have picked this place?"

It was cheap. And there was no credit check required. That was how.

Emma sighed, setting her second bottle of beer down on the floor next to the mattress and rubbing her temples. The headache that was setting in nearly made her head spin. She dulled it with a few more drinks. If you can count the rest of the six-pack as a few more. She could usually hold her liquor, but after downing all six beers in such a short amount of time, she was drunk.

"Fuck," she swore. "This fucking _sucks._ "

She didn't know whom she was talking to, but saying it out loud made her feel a little better. No one was listening, and that was almost better. She didn't want anyone to hear her distress, or see her as drunk as she was. She knew she was a mess. It didn't take long for her thoughts to boil over, and when they did, she chucked one of her empty bottles full-force at the wall and let out a frustrated scream. Then, once the bottle had crashed and shattered loudly, she went completely silent, hanging her head in her hands.

After a while, the haze of the alcohol dulled her inhibitions, and she reached for her phone. This normally would have been against her better judgement, but given that her judgement had mostly gone out the window, there was nothing left to stop her from texting her former friend, regardless of the fact that it was nearly four in the morning and that they'd left things on poor terms.

' **Wat u doin?'**

At first, after five minutes had passed, she was irritated at not having received a response. Her anger grew over the next twenty minutes. It only subsided when concern slipped into her jumbled collection of thoughts. Finally, she had the thought that something might have been wrong, so she sent another message.

' **U k?'**

Just a minute later, she received the answer she was so anxiously and drunkenly awaiting.

' **Yeah, I'm good. Just walking around. You?'**

Emma blinked a few times as she processed the response.

' **Y u awake?'**

As she sat down on a curb in front of the barbershop downtown, Ruby sighed. Conflicted about her next answer, she considered it carefully. Maybe not as carefully as she should have.

' **I miss you.'**

The distressed blonde sighed too. What was she supposed to say to that? Being drunk didn't exactly help her decision making process. In fact, the fog saturating her mind only made her more confused and anxious.

' **idk wut u want me to say'**

Ruby set her phone down in her lap and rubbed her tired eyes. Her mind was racing too fast to sleep, and she knew if she tried, she would fail. Getting this reply from Emma didn't help. Knowing full well that, even if she didn't spell everything correctly, Emma usually typed in full sentences, she started to worry, so she texted back quickly.

' **Are you alright?'**

Emma answered just as quickly.

' **totaly fine y?'**

Eyes widening as she realized why Emma might be typing like a middle schooler, Ruby sent another quick reply.

' **You're drunk, aren't you?'**

The blonde scowled at her phone and was momentarily tempted to throw it across the room. She was unable to rationalize this sudden wave of intense emotion, which only heightened her stress as she felt herself rapidly losing control.

' **So fking wat?'**

Ruby sighed again, knowing full well just how messy things could get for Emma when she was drunk. She knew the girl could hold her liquor well, but if she was barely able to type, Ruby also knew that things must be bad.

' **What happened? Do you want me to come over?'**

Emma considered her options. _Why did I even text her?_ she wanted to know. _What the fuck is wrong with me?_ But she was unable to process it fully, and no filter was able to catch what she was about to say.

' **reginas pissed cuz i wouldn't tell her were we went come ovr if u want.'**

As soon as Emma texted her the address, Ruby texted back.

' **On my way.'**

Emma stumbled to the door of the apartment and unlocked it, then stumbled back to the mattress and sat clumsily back down on it.

When Ruby knocked on the door, the blonde called out, "It's open."

The brunette stepped inside to find Emma leaned back, her hands supporting her and just barely keeping her upright, face bright red and sweat forming on her brow.

Seeing how red the girl's face was, Ruby commented, "Damn, you're a mess." Ruby sat down beside Emma on the mattress and added, "You gonna be alright, kid? Your face is wicked red."

When Emma said nothing, she reached out and pressed the back of her hand against Emma's cheek to feel the heat radiating from it.

"Yep. You're drunk, girly."

"I know," Emma whined. "But I… I…"

"It's alright, honey. I'm sure things will work out."

As Ruby wrapped an arm around her shoulders, Emma stiffened at first, but when she didn't let go, the blonde relaxed slightly and allowed herself to lean against the girl's side.

"I should have just told her the truth," Emma choked out, her voice cracking as she started to cry.

"Oh, honey," Ruby whispered, wiping away a few tears that had slipped from her companion's eyes. "It's alright. You're gonna be alright."

Without thinking, Emma fell into the girl's arms and let her head drop to Ruby's shoulder. Soon, Ruby was rubbing her back lightly, and the haze surrounding Emma's mind began to dissipate.

About an hour later, after very few words had been exchanged, Ruby asked, "Feeling any better?"

Emma stiffened again, pulled from her stupor, beginning to feel uncomfortable with the lack of distance between them.

She managed to reply, "A little," before pulling away.

"Hey," Ruby said gently. "It's alright. It's just a hug, okay? It doesn't have to mean anything. I'm just trying to help."

"Yeah, well… I…"

"Does it mean more than that to you?"

"Well… N-No…"

"Then it's alright. You should lay down and get some sleep. It's six in the morning."

"Fuck! I have to work. God, I'm gonna be so hungover."

There was still a slight slur in her voice, but her vision and her mind were less clouded, and it was easier for her to process the situation.

"Call out?"

"I can't. I can't…"

"Alright. I'll walk you to work then."

"But, I-"

"No, really. It's alright. Get a couple hours of sleep. I'll wake you. What time do you need to be up?"

"I work at nine, so… Seven-thirty?"

"That's not enough sleep, Em…"

"It's gonna have to be."

With a sigh, Ruby stroked Emma's hair back and nodded her head, saying, "Lie back. Get some rest."

Reluctantly, Emma lowered herself back down onto the bed and tried to relax. She spent the next thirty minutes trying to calm her thoughts, but the headache that was forming made it difficult for her to let them go. Eventually, she fell asleep, and Ruby sat beside her the entire time, just waiting to wake her.

When she did, Emma rubbed her temples, groaning, "Fuck. This is going to _suck._ "

"Yep. But you'll get through it. C'mon, soldier. Uppy uppy."

Emma nodded weakly and rose clumsily to her feet, then stumbled to the shower.

Once they'd arrived at the girl's work, Ruby turned to her and said, "Try to have a good day, champ. You want me to pick you up after and we can hang out?"

"Nah. I'm gonna need a nap. Anyway, I should try to talk to Gina…"

"Yeah…"

"I'll text you."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Really. Thank you for last night. I'm sorry I was such a mess."

"It's alright. I'm here for you."

But inside, Ruby was aching. Comforting Emma while she was processing a fight with her lover was the last thing she wanted to do. She wanted to tell Emma to leave Regina. To be _her_ lover. But she knew better than to push the issue. She also knew that being a good friend was the only way to keep Emma in her life, and that she had no chance to win her over as anything else.

After standing awkwardly in silence for a few moments, Ruby leaned in and embraced the blonde, kissing her cheek, then turned and walked away.

* * *

It was a tough decision, but by the time Emma left work, she was determined to win back Regina's affections, and therefore determined to tell her lover the truth.

After a few hours and three beers, she texted the girl what she'd been so afraid to say to her face.

' **We did some breaking and entering last night. That's the truth. I was scared to tell you because I knew you'd be pissed. I'm sorry.'**

A few more hours passed before Emma received a response. Finally, though, Regina replied.

' **I can't fucking believe you. Thank you for telling me the truth, Emma, but honestly… I'm going to need some space.'**

"FUCK!" Emma screamed, throwing her phone across the room.

Only once she'd calmed down some did she send a reply.

' **I understand.'**

She spent the next four evenings with Ruby. Of course, at that point, she refused to do anything illegal, but she made it clear that, as long as they were just hanging out, she was willing to spend time with her former friend.

On the fifth evening, though, Emma was startled to be met by her lover as she left her place of employment.

"Regina," she gasped. "Hi."

"Hi."

There was an awkward silence before either of them spoke again, but after a while, Regina broke it.

"What are you doing tonight?"

"Whatever you want me to," Emma replied, looking serious.

"Anything but breaking and entering," the brunette shot back, sounding bitter and slightly angered.

"I'm done with that. Done. Completely done."

"You haven't been with Ruby this whole time?"

Emma paused and began to look guilty.

Finally, she replied, "We didn't get into trouble."

"You mean you didn't get caught?"

"No! I mean I stayed out of trouble and did what you would have wanted me to. We just hung out around town and at the apartment. I swear."

Deciding whether or not to believe her lover's words, Regina told her, "I hope you're telling the truth."

"I am."

Another silence fell between them before the brunette asked, "Do you want to come over?"

"Of course I do."

"I miss you."

"But you were-"

"I know. I'm still pissed. But I do miss you."

Emma couldn't help but smile as she stepped slowly forward and held her arms out. She was unwilling to force the embrace onto her lover – especially when she seemed so upset – but she wanted to offer it, just in case it would be reciprocated. Luckily for Emma, it was. Regina hugged her tightly and let her head fall to the girl's shoulder.

Back at Regina's house, the two sat quietly on Regina's bed.

After a while, Emma said, "I'm really sorry, babe. I know I fucked up. I guess I just wanted to prove that I wasn't soft."

"Yeah. I get it."

"She said I was whipped, and I just-"

"What?"

"She said I was whipped, because I told her I didn't want to do anything."

"And that motivated you to break the law and almost get yourself arrested?"

Looking ashamed and embarrassed, Emma turned her gaze away, mumbling, "Yes."

"Alright."

Then, the blonde looked up and asked, "What do you mean, 'alright?'"

"I mean, 'alright.' I get it. You felt the need to establish your independence from me. It makes sense. I'm still upset about it, but I get it."

"But I-"

"No. Emma. I don't want to argue about this, okay? Let's just leave it alone. I took time to myself. I think you learned that what you did was fucked up. That's what matters. There's no reason to stay pissed."

"What? Really?"

"Really. I love you too much to stay mad."

After a pause, Emma took her hand and asked softly, "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine."

"No, really. Talk to me."

"I've been so angry. And I don't want to be angry. But it's not even about what you did. It's the fact that you basically lied to me and wouldn't tell me what you were really doing with her. Like, how do I know you haven't been lying about everything else? It's just going to be so hard to trust you now…"

"I know," Emma sighed. "I don't blame you. I don't deserve your trust. I'm so sorry."

"It's alright. I'm going to trust you anyway. I'm going to _choose_ to trust you, even though it's hard. Because I love you, and because you deserve a second chance."

"Thank you, Gina… I just… I just want to be a good girlfriend for you… And I'm not. I mean… Maybe you should just…"

"Whoa. Don't. Don't even say it. I'm staying with you. I love you, Emma. People make mistakes. It doesn't mean you're a bad person."

"I feel like it does."

"Well, it doesn't," Regina asserted sternly. "You're a good person, Emma, regardless of the trouble you've gotten in."

"I love you, Gina…"

Looking into her lover's eyes, Regina said, "Kiss me, Emma."

With a blush – she was surprised at the sudden request for affection – Emma obliged the command and kissed Regina softly on the lips, grateful for the forgiveness she'd received.


	14. Chapter 14: A New Start

They spent the next few days feeling uneasy around each other. Although they were grateful for each other's company, it was difficult to put aside their uncertainty and inhibitions. Emma feared that Regina's mercy would run out and be torn from her if her lover changed her mind, and Regina feared that Emma's promises, though surely heart-felt, lacked weight and were impossible for her to keep. Still, they comforted each other with silent gestures of affection. When Regina stood in the kitchen after Emma returned from work one night, making them dinner, Emma stood behind her with her hands lightly placed on her waist.

"Emma…" Regina said softly, her freezing as her hands rested on the counter.

"Yeah."

"Are you sure that this is really the life you want?"

Backing away slowly and removing her hands from the girl's waist, the blonde replied, "What do you mean?"

"This. Us."

"Of course I want us!"

"No, I mean… like this. The way things are now. With all the expectations that have been placed on you. By me."

"I don't… I don't know what you mean."

"I expect you to be a respectable human being. I expect you to stay out of trouble. If you're with me, that is. More than that, though, I want you to be happy. If you can't be happy like this, I want you to leave and pursue what you really want."

"You _are_ what I really want."

Having remained facing away from her lover so far in the conversation, Regina turned slowly and looked into Emma's piercing green eyes. She was always stunned by their radiance and their ability to captivate her with every glance.

"Emma…"

"You are."

"But are you-"

Instead of allowing Regina to finish, Emma took a few steps forward, closing the distance between their bodies, cupped Regina's face in her hands, and kissed her lips passionately.

"I can do this," she said, finally breaking away. "I can be good for you."

"Emma. It's not about-"

"No. I mean it. I can behave. I can stay out of trouble. And it's not _just_ for you. Of course, I'm tempted to go back to that life. It's all I've known my entire life. But I know it's only going to ruin me. I know that. And I want to be better. For me and for you."

"Really?" Regina asked, not hiding the surprise in her voice.

"Yes. I want this for both of us. And if you left me, I would still try to be a good person."

No longer holding back, and ignoring her reservations, Regina threw her arms around the girl with enthusiasm and embraced her.

"God, I love you so much."

Smiling softly, Emma stroked her hair and kissed the top of her head, saying, "I love you too."

Abruptly, Regina broke the silence that had fallen between them.

"Emma… Do you want kids?"

"What?" the blonde gawked, clearly startled by the question.

"Do you want to have kids?"

There was a long pause as Emma slowly pulled away and stared at her lover.

"I don't know," she finally answered, her face reddening slightly.

"Oh."

"What?"

"Nothing. We should eat. Dinner's done."

"Regina-"

"Go ahead and sit down. I'll bring the food out."

"Let me help you."

"Go sit."

"Regina, what's the matter?"

"Nothing. Please, go sit down and let me serve your dinner."

"Regina, I don't need you to serve me. I'm a grown-ass woman, and I-"

"I said sit."

Raising her eyebrows in surprise at the tone of command in Regina's voice, Emma turned and walked away, then waited in the dining room for her lover to appear with their meal.

* * *

Emma thought about the conversation that Regina had cut short for the rest of the evening. By the time they were beneath the bed sheets, intending to fall asleep, her head was spinning. Finally, when she could stand it no longer, she spoke.

"Regina… Do you want kids?"

"What?" Regina replied, startled awake by the sound of Emma's voice, which had abruptly broken the silence that had allowed her to drift off to sleep.

"Do you want kids?"

"I…" the brunette started, feeling the words form a lump in her throat. "Someday… Yes, I do."

What else could she have said? She supposed she could have lied, but where would that land her? What kind of a lover would that make her? And how would that break Emma's trust in her when she found out? She had to tell the truth.

Emma was quiet for a while as she stared up at the ceiling, thinking hard about her response.

When she didn't reply after some time, Regina asked, "Emma?"

"I'm just thinking," Emma assured her.

"What… What about?"

"About us."

"What about us…?"

Regina's nervousness showed in her voice. She was scared of what Emma might say, and it made her palms clammy with cold sweat.

"Us, together, Christmas day, with little munchkins running around, chasing the new puppy we just got them."

"What?"

"You. Me. Kids. Dog. House. Christmas."

Swallowing hard, Regina sat up in bed.

"Emma?"

"Yes, love," the blonde replied calmly, folding her arms behind her head as she looked up at her partner.

"Do you want that?"

"I've never wanted kids before you. But imagining a family, a home with you… I want that now. I didn't think it was possible to be so happy. But I am, with you, and I want that forever."

Feeling more than relieved, Regina exhaled her anxiety and rested a hand flat on Emma's stomach.

"I love you, Emma."

"I love you too, baby. What did you think I was going to say?"

"I thought you were going to tell me to go fuck myself."

"What?"

"I never really imagined you wanting kids. You've always sort of avoided them in general, and you've never said anything about wanting any of your own, so I just… I was scared that if I told you I wanted them, it would scare you off."

"Well, it didn't. It just surprised me, I guess. I mean, I'm not _surprised._ I just… I never thought about you wanting them before."

"I'm glad I didn't scare you off… Emma… I don't know what I'd do if I lost you. When I thought… When I thought we were over, I…"

"We're not over," Emma told her softly, sitting up and lightly touching the girl's cheek. "We never will be. I'm here for the long haul. There's nothing you could do to get rid of me. Besides, even if I didn't want kids… if you wanted them, we'd have them. I'll give you anything and everything you want, Regina. Anything."

"Em… I want us to make decisions together. I don't want you to do things just because I want you to. Do you understand that?"

"I mean… I guess so. But it doesn't mean I wouldn't make sacrifices for you. I'd do anything for you, Regina."

"I know that, Em. I know. I just… You need your independence. And I get that. I want you to have that."

"I do have that."

"That's why I haven't protested you hanging out with Ruby."

"I know…" Emma told her. After a pause, she added, "But it bothers you."

With a sigh, Regina replied, "I don't know. I mean, yeah, but… I know you need friends. I just wish you could maybe pick some that don't steal things just for shits and giggles."

"She's just… a little misguided. Like me. She was adopted, and even her adoptive parents never gave a shit about her. At first, she did things for attention. Her adoptive parents' attention… friends' attention… lovers' attention. Then, it became habit for her. It's just the way she is."

"It doesn't have to be."

"I know that. She just doesn't realize that yet. She'll grow out of it, just like I am."

Regina waited for Emma to say more, and when she didn't, she placed a light kiss on her lover's cheek and started to move away. Emma caught her arm gently, though, and pulled her back, kissing her lips.

"I'll never leave you," she whispered, kissing her again and again.

"Emma…"

"No. Listen to me. She's not going to come between us, and she's not going to change me. I made a mistake, and it won't happen again. I want this life, not my old one. She's still my friend, but she's not my life. You are."

Overwhelmed with affection, the brunette pushed on Emma's shoulders until she was laying down, then lowered herself on top of her, kissing her lover's lips passionately. As Emma kissed her harder, Regina's hands wandered, under they were beneath Emma's shirt, palming her breasts, leaving Emma breathless.

"I love you," the blonde gasped, when Regina's tongue finally untangled from her own and slipped back out of her mouth.

"I love you."

Before Emma could say more, Regina's mouth was on hers again, kissing her even harder than before, until their teeth clashed. Equally as breathless as her lover, Regina subconsciously pressed her hips into Emma's, earning a soft moan from the blonde's soft lips.

"Regina," she whimpered. "We should st-"

But her lover bit down on her lower lip, and that was enough to stop her protests. It was too much to handle, but she couldn't refrain from reciprocating each movement.

"I want you," Regina told Emma, stroking her hair back.

"Regina, no. We need to-"

"Please."

"No, Regina. I said no."

Struggling to catch her breath again but finally unwilling to continue, Emma gently pushed the girl away and sat up.

"Emma-"

"Enough. We're going to sleep, okay? Just let me hold you."

"What are you waiting for? A stupid piece of paper that says we're married, according to the law? Is that really what matters?"

"You're kind of being a jerk right now."

Regina turned her back in silence and rolled over to face the wall, falling asleep shortly after without saying another word.

 **[LINE BREAK]**

When Emma woke up the next morning, Regina was gone.

Emma spent the day at work second-guessing her decision to push Regina away and to end what they had started.

When her shift was over and she checked her phone, expecting _something_ from Regina – a text, a call… anything – she only found a message from Ruby.

' _ **Wassup, doc?'**_

As frustrated and anxious as she was about the tension between herself and Regina, she had to smile at this and quickly typed a reply.

' _ **Just got off work. You?'**_

' _ **Chilling like a villain. Wanna chill?'**_

Emma hesitated as she walked down the sidewalk towards her apartment – she wasn't so sure it was a good idea to go back to Regina's right away – and considered her options. She could sit at home, alone, doing nothing… waiting for Regina to message her (which didn't seem to likely), or she could go out and try to brighten her sullen mood. She decided on the latter.

' _ **Yeah. When?'**_

' _ **Just come over. I'm bored and I have beer.'**_

 **[LINE BREAK]**

"Hey, kid," Ruby said, beaming at Emma as she stepped into the apartment. When she noticed Emma's melancholy expression, she asked, "What's got you down, champ?"

"Kid? Champ? Really, Ruby?" Emma chuckled, moving to sit on the couch.

Ruby joined her on the sofa and wrapped an arm around Emma's shoulders, saying, "Sure. But seriously. What's the matter? You look like a kicked puppy."

"It's… It's nothing."

Rolling her eyes, the brunette scolded her, "Don't feed me that bullshit, Emma. I can always tell when you're lying."

"I'm not _lying._ I'm just… in denial."

Ruby laughed at this and kissed the girl's cheek.

"Tell me what happened."

"Regina and I got into… I don't even know what it was. It wasn't a fight. It was more like… a disagreement that ended badly."

"You wanna tell me what it was about?"

Shaking her head, Emma looked away. When Ruby squeezed her shoulder and lifted her chin, she sighed.

"She wants to have sex, and I don't."

"Whoa, dude. You're not sleeping with her?"

"Well, I'm sleeping with her, but I'm not _sleeping_ with her."

"Uh-huh. Sure."

"No, really! I'm not!"

"How are you spending the night in her bed and _not_ fucking her?"

"I don't know. I just… She's never had sex before. And I want it to be perfect for her, when it happens for the first time. I don't want it to be rushed or anything. And she doesn't understand that. She wants to jump right into it."

"Well, how long have you been dating?"

"Um… A while…"

"Then what are you waiting for?"

"I don't know, okay? I'm just. I don't want to rush it, that's all. Jesus Christ, Ruby. Way to make me feel like shit."

"Hey. Hey, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you feel bad, okay? I just… don't really… get it..."

"Maybe it's stupid. I don't know. Maybe I should just give it up and have sex with her."

"Wait… Emma…"

"What?" the blonde sighed, giving Ruby a sad glance.

"Don't do anything you're not ready for, alright?"

"It's not about me. It's about her. She thinks she's ready, and I don't."

"Don't you think that should be her decision, not yours?"

"Well… I mean… Yeah, but-"

"But you're worried she's rushing it and that she'll regret it if you do."

Relieved that Ruby was starting to understand, Emma replied with a quick, "Yes."

"That makes sense. You want it to be perfect for her, not mediocre… Like it was for you."

"What?"

"With me."

"That… That's not…"

"Not what?"

"That's not true. It wasn't… It wasn't mediocre…"

After a pause, Ruby pressed, "But you regretted it."

"Because of the way you treated me!" Emma cried. "You-"

"I know. I'm sorry, Emma."

Emma's head fell into her hands, and to Ruby's shock and horror, she started to cry.

"Oh, shit," Ruby breathed. "Emma… I'm sorry. I'm so sorry…" When Emma began to cry louder, she added, "I never meant to hurt you."

As Ruby began to slide her arm away, though, Emma leaned against her and rested her head on her shoulder.

"Shit, Em…"

When she realized that Emma wasn't about to stop crying on her own, she wrapped her arms around the girl and squeezed gently, then slowly rubbed her back.

"Emma… Emma, it's okay."

Slowly, Emma's tears dried, but she didn't pull away.

Continuing to hold her, Ruby said softly, "Listen… You're not me, okay? You won't fuck up like I did. You won't hurt her. There will be nothing for her to regret, because you're not going to do what I did. You're going to love her and take care of her. You won't break her heart like I broke yours."

"But… But what if-"

"You won't."

"How do you know?"

"Because you're not like that. You're not a shitty person, like me."

"Ruby… You're not a shitty person," Emma sniffled, wiping her eyes.

Gently, Ruby pushed her hands away from her face and wiped her tears away with her thumbs.

"I'm not trying to talk you into having sex with her. I'm just pointing out that she'll have nothing to regret with you. I just don't want you to be afraid to give yourself to her, when we both know that that's what you really want."

Emma sighed in response.

"Just think about it, okay?"

The blonde nodded her head and looked away again.

"It's gonna be okay, Em," Ruby whispered, tucking some of Emma's hair behind her ear. "I promise. She'll cool down and understand, whatever you decide to do or not to do. You love her, and she loves you, and it'll all be fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"How?"

"I just do, okay? I know you. I know how much you love her."

Again, Emma nodded, then paused before saying, "It wasn't mediocre with you."

"What?"

"The sex, Ruby. It wasn't mediocre. It was good."

"Emma…"

"I'm just saying."

"Why are you saying that, though?"

"Because I want you to know. I regret giving you everything, because you broke my heart, but it wasn't mediocre. You're good in bed, and I don't want you to think that I didn't… you know... enjoy it…"

Swallowing hard as she felt her heart rate increase, Ruby said, "Okay," and turned her attention to the floor, feeling uncomfortable with the thoughts and emotions that Emma had brought pouring back for her.

"Ruby, I-"

"Please, don't say anything else. I… I just want to let it go, okay?"

Biting her lip, Emma nodded and told her, "I'm sorry."

In response, Ruby handed her a beer and offered, "Let's get shitfaced."

Emma nodded and popped the cap off with the bottle opener Ruby handed her next and chugged half the beer before wiping her eyes once more. A few beers later, they were both past drunk.

"I don't deserve her," Emma suddenly blurted. "She deserves better than me."

"Oy!" Ruby shouted, startling the blonde to the point that she jumped slightly in her seat. "That's horseshit! You're perfect, Emma."

"Oh, I'm perfect, alright. A perfectly shitty person."

"Don't fucking say that."

The brunette shoved her – not hard, though – and scowled. Emma just sighed and rubbed her temples after setting her last bottle on the coffee table in front of them.

"You need to sleep here," Ruby said after a bout of silence.

"No, I should-"

"You're drunk, and you're staying. You take the bed. I'll take the couch."

"No way!"

"Why not?"

"If I'm staying, I'm taking the couch."

"Fine," Ruby laughed.

Then, she grabbed a couch pillow and hit Emma with it, earning the same response from the blonde in return. The pillow fight lasted until Emma had her pinned to the couch and covered her face with the pillow.

"'Kay. You're dead now. Surrender?"

"Okay, okay!" Ruby laughed brightly. "You win."

But when Emma pulled away, Ruby shoved her off the couch and pinned her to the floor, slapping her with her own pillow. As Emma went still, Ruby set the pillow down beside them and pinned the girl's wrists, staring down into her eyes.

"I love you, Em," Ruby said softly, looking broken and conflicted.

"Ruby…"

"I know," she replied, quickly pulling away and climbing off her friend before staring at the wall to avoid Emma's gaze. "I'm sorry. I should let you sleep. You probably have work in the-"

Emma's phone went off, telling her she had a text message, distracting them both from the conversation. The text was from Regina.

' _ **Are you coming over or…?'**_

"She wanted to know if I was coming over," Emma explained to Ruby.

"You're too drunk to leave, Emma."

"I wouldn't leave anyway. I said we'd hang out, so we will. I wouldn't bail on you after saying we'd chill. I'm not just here because she's upset with me. I'm here to see you."

This earned a weak smile from Ruby, who looked relieved to have been told that she wasn't being used as a Plan B.

"Thank you, Emma," she said softly, sitting beside her on the floor. "Anyway, we should sleep. It's late, and you're slurring."

"I'm not-"

"You are. Come on. Get some sleep. I'll bring you out a blanket and a real pillow."

"I'm just gonna hit you with it," Emma laughed with a grin.

"Yeah, yeah, smartypants. Now, lay down and try not to barf on my new rug."

"I'm not gonna-"

But Emma realized, mid-sentence, that he stomach was flipping, and she was, in fact, dangerously close to throwing up.

"Lay down," Ruby said softly, with a gentle smile. "I'll be right back."

With a sigh, Emma did as she was told, lifting herself slowly off the floor and climbing onto the couch. By the time Ruby returned with the pillow, she was fast asleep, her arm hanging over the side of the sofa, with her lips slightly parted as she began to snore lightly.


	15. Chapter 15: Meeting Ruby

When Emma woke up in the morning and looked at her phone to check for a message from Regina, she saw her own last words.

' _ **No.'**_

"Ouch," she muttered, realizing that she'd been overly abrupt and cold, and that she'd probably hurt Regina's feelings. But she'd been too drunk to say more, and she was almost glad that she hadn't said anything else to make things worse.

"Hey, kid," Ruby said, appearing in the living room just as Emma was setting her phone down on her stomach.

When Ruby walked over to her and ran her fingers through Emma's hair, stroking it out of her face, Emma sighed and shut her eyes.

"I'm dumb."

"What? What's going on?"

"When I replied last night, all I said was 'No.'"

"Oooh… Ouch."

"I know, right?"

Ruby bit her lip and paused before replying, not wanting to say anything that would further upset Emma, who was obviously already in a sensitive and vulnerable position.

"It'll be alright. Just text her now and apologize. Tell her you were drunk and didn't want to-"

"But she'll-"

"You should be honest, Emma. Keeping things from her isn't the way to build trust with her."

With another sigh, Emma rubbed her temples and mumbled, "Yeah, I guess so."

"Text her."

"What time is it?"

"Too early to be awake. Just send her a quick text and go back to sleep, yeah?"

"Ugh. Why do you have to be right?"

Ruby laughed and replied, "I grew up, just a little bit, I guess."

"Hey. That's bullshit. You're still a little hoodlum. Can't stay out of trouble to save your life."

"Sure I can!"

"Yeah?"

"Well… No. But still. At least I have a little more insight now."

"Fair enough."

When Emma smiled at her, Ruby's stomach flipped, and she looked away, silently protesting her own reaction to the radiance the girl was exuding.

The blonde asked, "What?" as she sat up on the couch, lifting the pillow behind her slightly to support her back.

"Nothing. Want breakfast?"

"Nah. Not hungry. Still pretty nauseous."

"Aww, hun. I'm sorry. Can I get you anything?"

"Some Tylenol?"

"I'm on it, babe."

When Ruby returned with the medication, Emma looked relieved and took two of the pills quickly before saying, "Thank you."

"Anything for you, kiddo."

Shoving her friend playfully, Emma laughed and said, "Quit calling me that. I'm not a kid anymore."

"You're right," Ruby mused. "You have grown up quite a bit."

There was a short pause before Emma blurted, "I think I want kids, Ruby."

"Uh… What?"

"I think I want kids."

"Is that for real? Are you fucking with me right now?"

"Yes. And no."

"What the… Why? All they do is scream and poop!"

Laughing again, Emma replied, "Because I want that life, Ruby. I want to settle down. Get married. Buy a house. Raise kids with her."

Obviously surprised by the response, Ruby said, "Then you'd better text her."

With a nod, Emma picked up her phone and took her time sending a well-thought-out message to her lover.

' _ **I'm sorry about last night. I was at Ruby's and we got a little drunk. We didn't go anywhere or get in trouble or anything. I was just too drunk to think straight.'**_

The reply came almost instantly.

' _ **That's fucking great, Emma. You get trashed and you think it's better than getting in trouble?'**_

' _ **Well, yeah. It is.'**_

' _ **Alright. At least you didn't get your ass arrested this time.'**_

' _ **That's not fair.'**_

' _ **Isn't it?'**_

' _ **Why are you always so angry with me?'**_

Of course, this caught Regina off guard as she thought about it. Was it true? Was she really _always_ angry?

' _ **I'm sorry.'**_

Emma raised her eyebrows and looked up from her phone, glancing over at Ruby.

"What's up, kid?" the brunette asked her, sitting down beside her on the couch. Then, she added, "You should eat something."

"She just said _she_ was sorry."

"What did you say?"

"Well, before that, I asked why she was always angry with me. I haven't replied to her apology yet."

"What are you gonna say?"

"I don't know."

Emma's head fell to Ruby's shoulder as the brunette held her hand.

"It's gonna be fine. She just needed a little space is all."

"What do you think she's feeling? Like, where is this all coming from?"

"I'm not really sure, but I think it's just because she feels ready, and she might be taking your 'no' as a rejection. Like you don't really want her."

"But how could she think that when I'm so in love with her? When I tell her I'm in love with her all the time?"

"Because sex is more intimate. It's the next level in a relationship. And you won't go there."

Sighing, Emma asked, "Should I?"

"I don't think you want to."

"It's not that I don't want to! I just… I don't… I'm not ready. I don't want to ruin it for her."

"Are you sure it's not about you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Think about it."

"But I don't-"

"Just think for a minute. Think about where this fear is coming from."

After a pause, the blonde asked, "Fear?"

"Yeah. Fear of 'ruining it for her.' Or maybe it's fear of something else."

"Like what?"

"Think about it, Em."

"I don't know."

"Maybe you're scared that things won't work out, and you'll end up with a broken heart again, having given yourself completely. Maybe you're scared you'll end up with nothing left again."

Shocked by this revelation, Emma lowered her head into her hands and started to cry almost instantly.

"Shit, Em," Ruby breathed quickly. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-"

"No," Emma choked out. "You're right. You're right. I'm scared. I don't want to lose her, and I don't want her to hate me for taking that away from her. I don't want to be left with nothing again. What if she changes her mind? What if it doesn't work out? What if-"

"Emma. Honey. Listen to me," Ruby cooed, rubbing her friend's back with a gentle hand. "It's going to be okay."

"But how do you know? How can you be sure?"

"I just am."

"But-"

"You should call her."

"Are you kidding? I'm a mess!"

"You should call her right now, while you're upset, and tell her how you feel."

"No way."

"Just trust me. When she hears how vulnerable you are, she'll let go of whatever anger she's feeling and better understand where you're coming from. Trust me. Just do it."

"I can't. It's embarrassing!"

"Emma, come on. Just do this. Be vulnerable with her. She'll thank you for it later."

"Alright, alright," Emma sniffled, wiping her eyes. "I'm calling."

The phone rang four times before Regina picked up and answered with a simple, "Hi."

Emma could tell she was frustrated. She could hear it in Regina's voice, and it made her waver slightly in her resolve.

"I… I…" she tried, but couldn't get the words out.

"What, Emma? Spit it out."

"I'm s-sorry," the blonde choked out. "I'm sorry I said no. I'm sorry I upset you. I'm sorry I'm a mess. I just… I…"

There was silence from the other end of the line. After a few anxious moments of holding the phone to hear ear and trying to slow her breathing, Emma looked up at Ruby and bit her lip. Ruby responded quickly by rubbing her back again and nodding her head, to signal that she was doing well and should keep going.

"I just don't want to lose you," Emma finally blurted, cracking the silence. "I don't want to give everything to you and then have you resent me for taking it from you to fast, or at the wrong time. And I don't want to give it all up and lose it again…"

"Oh, my God," Regina breathed, shocked at hearing Emma's tears and blunt honesty. "I'm so sorry. I am such an asshole." When there was no reply, but she could hear Emma sniffling, she added, "Are you crying?

"No! I mean, yes. But no, you're not. You're not an asshole. I'm just a wimp, and I didn't know how to tell you."

"I'm so sorry. I thought you didn't really want me. I thought I wasn't good enough for you. And then there's Ruby…"

"Ruby? What does any of this have to do with Ruby?"

"Well… I mean… You slept with her, didn't you? But you won't sleep with me. And now you're hanging out with her again, and I just…"

"It's not like that, Regina."

"I know that now. I'm sorry."

"I just want the timing to be right for both of us, you know? I don't want to mess this up. You mean the world to me."

"Oh, Emma. I'm _so_ sorry."

"You don't have to keep saying that."

"But I am! I am sorry."

"No, I'm sorry. I'm sorry for making you feel like I didn't want you. I should have been honest. I guess I just didn't even really figure it out for myself until Ruby kind of pointed it out."

"What?"

After glancing over at her friend again, Emma replied, "She pointed out that I was heartbroken after what happened with her, and that I probably just didn't want that to happen again. I always just kind thought I didn't want to hurt you. But I guess I really don't want to get hurt either."

"Ruby said that?"

"Yeah, she said that. Why?"

"I, um… I don't know. Anyway, I'm not leaving you, Emma."

"Do you, um… Do you want to see me?"

"Please."

"Alright. I'm gonna head back to my apartment and then head back after a shower."

"Okay. Be safe."

"I love you, Regina."

"I love you too, Em."

After Emma had hung up the phone, Ruby smiled and kissed the top of her head.

"See, champ? Told ya."

"How did you know that was going to happen?"

"I just know things. Now, go on. Get ready to leave so you can go see your girl."

"Thank you, Ruby. Seriously."

* * *

"I'm sorry," Emma blurted, as soon as she stepped through the doorway.

"Emma, don't. I'm-"

"No, really. I am. I-"

Before Emma could finish, Regina crashed their lips together, cupping the back of her lover's neck to pull her closer. When the blonde started to pull away several moments later, Regina pulled her closer and continued the kiss, her free hand moving around to put a small amount of pressure on the small of Emma's back.

"Don't," Regina whispered. "Don't pull away."

Emma wrapped her arms around Regina's waist and smiled into the kiss.

"I love you," she whispered, earning an echoed response from her lover.

"I don't want you to stay in your apartment," Regina blurted suddenly, as soon as they finally did end the kiss.

"What?"

"I want you here."

"Regina…"

"Please, Emma."

"I don't think-"

"Please, just tell me why, then. Why are you so afraid to be close to me? Why are you so afraid that I'll leave you?"

"I don't know, okay? I've been left before, and I lived through it, but if I lost you… I couldn't handle it."

"And you think living in your own apartment, away from me, will prevent that?"

"Well… No… but…"

"You pushing me away is not going to bring us closer together."

In that moment of realization, Emma froze. Instantly, it became blatantly clear that her own thought process was contradictory to reality, and as she discovered this, her cheeks turned an embarrassed shade of pink.

"Well?" Regina pressed impatiently.

"I'm… I'm sorry. You're right. It's silly. It's stupid. I'm sorry."

"It's not stupid, honey," Regina sighed. "It just doesn't make sense. I can understand where those feelings are coming from, but you should temper those thoughts with logic. I wouldn't be asking you to move in with me if I didn't want this to last."

"I…"

"Emma."

"Regina… I still don't think it's time for us to move in together. And besides, as much as I love your parents, it would be a little awkward for me to keep staying here. For a little while, as I got back on my feet, it made sense, but now… I need to be independent. And not just to distance myself from you. I need to do some things on my own. I don't want to be co-dependent. I want to be able to-"

"Is this about Ruby?"

" _What?_ " Emma gaped, staring at Regina.

"Is this about Ruby?"

"What does that even mean?"

"Are you just wanted more space to have her-"

"Regina! What the fuck!"

"I'm just asking."

"It doesn't sound like you're 'just asking.' It sounds like you're being paranoid and overbearing. And it sounds like you're trying to pressure me into something that I've already told you several times that I don't think is right for me to do yet."

"Shit. Emma, I'm sorry. Fuck." Stepping backwards until the backs of her legs were pressed against the bed, Regina sat down and hung her head in her hands. "Fuck. I'm such an idiot. You're totally right. I'm jealous, Emma. And it makes no sense. I guess we both have our own irrational thoughts and insecurities to deal with. It's just that it feels like you're avoiding this because you're either scared or seriously just don't want to be that close to me."

"I'm not! I swear I'm not. I do want that. I just don't think it's the right move for me right now. I won't speak for you, but for me… I'm not ready." When Regina didn't look up at her, Emma continued, "To be honest, it seems like you don't even trust me, which is where all this Ruby paranoia is coming from."

"I do trust you, Emma… I just…"

"See?"

"Emma, please, listen to me. I trust you. I do. I'm just scared. It's just my own insecurity. My own shit. Not you. I'm realizing that now."

At first, Emma said nothing, but when she looked at Regina as the girl lifted her head, she could tell this was the truth.

"Alright," the blonde said slowly, making her way over to the bed and sitting down cautiously beside the brunette. "So what now?"

"Can you tell me when you do see us moving in together, or what that would look like?"

"Sure. I mean, I guess I want it to just be us. I want us to have our own place together. Actually, Gina… I was thinking maybe when you start school, I could move with you…"

"What? Really?"

"I know you were not really sure about going without me… but I want you to go. You need to go. And I have nothing here. No family, no one. I don't want to be without you, but I don't want to hold you back from your dreams. So… maybe I could go with you, and we could get a place together. I'll get a job and pay for the place while you're in school, and-"

"Wait, wait, wait. You're not paying for the whole thing yourself. It's not like I won't have a job, and I-"

"No way! You're not getting a job while you're in school! You need to focus on your studies."

"That's not happening. I'm not letting you pay for everything. If you really insist that I don't get a job… Mom and Dad always said they'd pay my rent while I was in school. And as soon as I get a job after school, I'll pay my own way. Okay?"

Slowly, a smile crept over Emma's lips as she replied, "Okay, babe. I guess that's fair."

"So… You really want to move with me?"

"Yeah, I do. And that gives us plenty of time for me to find a job and for us to find a place to live."

Throwing her arms around her lover, Regina squeezed Emma tightly and kissed her cheek, saying, "I love you so much."

When Regina pulled away, though, Emma's smile faded.

"So… What are we going to do about the Ruby thing?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean… You're jealous… and I don't want to make you feel uncomfortable… So, what can I do to make you feel better about us being friends again?"

"I'm not going to ask you to change your relationship with her just because of my own jealousy."

"We can compromise. It doesn't have to be all my way."

After a thoughtful pause, Regina replied, "Do you think… Do you think I could meet her?"

"What? You want to meet her? But… why?"

"I don't know… I guess maybe I would feel better if I knew… I don't know."

"If you knew what?"

"I don't know. I can't explain it. I just feel like if I knew her it would be harder to hate her."

"If… If you really want to, I'll ask her. If you're sure."

"I'm… I'm sure."

"You don't sound sure."

With a sigh, Regina rested her head on Emma's shoulder.

"I just want to make you happy. I just want to be enough for you."

"You are enough for me! Regina. You've always been enough for me. You're more than I've ever dreamed of."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure," Emma assured her with a smile, gently stroking her hair. "I love you. I'll text her right now."

' **Hey Rubes. So… Gina wants to meet you. Do you think you'd be up for that?'**

' **Yeah, I'm down, if you're sure that's chill. When?'**

"Gina?" Emma asked, looking up from her phone. When the girl met her gaze, she asked, "When do you want to meet her?"

"Is she okay with it?"

"Yeah, she just wants to know when."

"I mean, anytime really. I'm nervous, though, so… the sooner the better, I guess."

"Now?"

"I… Yeah. Yeah, that's probably a good idea."

' **Anytime. Now, if you want.'**

' **I'll be over in fifteen.'**

' **108 Mifflin St.'**

"She said she'll be over in fifteen," Emma announced, kissing her lover's temple. "You gonna be okay?"

"Yeah. I'll be okay."

* * *

When Ruby knocked at the door, all three felt their stomachs flip in anticipation for the awkward moment that was to follow.

"Hey, Rubes," Emma greeted the girl, offering a nervous smile. "This is Regina."

"Hi. I'm Ruby."

"Come on in. Are you hungry? I can make us something to eat if you two would like."

"No, thank you. I just had a bite to eat before I left the house, actually. Thank you very much, though."

Emma hadn't heard Ruby use that impeccable manners probably ever, so she was shocked by the girl's polite and respectful demeanor.

"Alright then," Regina replied. "Well…"

When Regina trailed off, Emma picked up the conversation and asked, "You guys want to play Monopoly or something?"

Both girls laughed at this, and Ruby quickly chimed in with, "God, you're such a nerd."

"I'm not a nerd!" Emma cried, sticking out her lower lip as she pouted. "Besides, you're just scared you'll lose."

"Against you? Doubt it."

"Hey, listen, punk. I-"

"Ladies," Regina chuckled. "Settle down. I'll kick both your asses without even trying."

"Okay, first of all-"

"No, I wanna see this," Ruby cut in with a grin. "Let's do it."

* * *

"Aaaaand, there you have it, ladies!" Regina told them with a smirk, several hours later. "Beat you both by $1,800. Any questions?"

"ASSHOLE!" Emma shouted, falling back onto the carpet and staring up at the ceiling, exasperated.

"As I'm sure you know," Ruby said, "Emma here is a sore loser."

"Whatever!" the blonde cried, sitting up quickly. "I got second place, anyway. You were the first one bankrupt."

"Hey, hush up. She's good, alright? Chica knows how to handle her money."

Grinning, Ruby offered Regina a wink, which startled the girl somewhat, but after a moment of surprise, Regina returned it with a smile.

"Ugh. You two oughta start a Let's-Pick-On-Emma Club."

"Omigod," Ruby gasped. "That's a _great_ idea!"

Regina burst out laughing at this and playfully slapped Emma's knee.

"Shut the fuck up, Ruby," Emma told the girl with a scowl. "At least I can kick your ass at videogames any day."

Ruby's expression darkened, and she went quiet at this.

"Aww, what's the matter, Rubes? Sore loser much?"

Grabbing the closest couch pillow to her, Ruby swung hard at Emma's head, making contact on the first swing.

"Hey!" Emma cried loudly. "Knock it off!"

But Regina took her opportunity to join in and grabbed the other couch pillow, enthusiastically hitting Emma's side.

"Not fair!" the blonde shouted. "I don't have a pillow!"

"Don't be such a sore loser, Em!" Regina laughed, hitting her again.

Ruby fell over laughing at this, which gave Emma the opportunity to grab the girl's pillow. She swung it hard, first at Regina's head, then used it to cover Ruby's face.

"Quit it!" Ruby demanded, through her laughter, voice muffled by the pillow as she tried to push it away.

Regina pilled her off quickly and wrapped her arms around her from behind, kissing the side of her neck and causing Emma to shiver.

When Ruby sat up and saw this, she bit her lip involuntarily and had to look away.

As soon as Emma noticed this, she asked, "You okay, Rubes?"

The girl nodded instantly, but said, "I should get going."

"Stay for a movie," Regina offered, without waiting for Emma's response.

The blonde's eyebrows raised slightly in surprise at the offer.

"I… I really should-"

"No, come on. Stay. I'll make dinner."

"You really should-"

"She's going to argue with you until you say yes," Emma told Ruby. "Just stay."

With a sigh and a smile, Ruby nodded her head.


	16. Chapter 16: What the Future Brings

**THE FOLLOWING YEAR**

"So… You all packed?" Ruby asked her friend, forcing a smile.

"Yeah, pretty much," Emma replied, pushing a hand through her hair. "Was up all night packing Regina's shit. I have like one suitcase. She's bringing everything in the house but the kitchen sink."

"Wow," Ruby chuckled. "You sure did pick a high maintenance lady, huh?"

Emma laughed lightly.

"She's not high maintenance. She just has a lot of crap."

"You must be exhausted then."

"Yeah, I am. But it'll be alright."

"Who's driving?"

"Me. I'm gonna let her sleep."

"When are you leaving?"

Emma paused and shifted her weight from one foot to the other.

"Around two this afternoon."

"Shit…"

"What?"

"I just thought… I thought we'd have some time. I wanted to take you out to dinner."

"Oh… Fuck, Ruby… I'm sorry. I should've thought of that. I didn't think… I…"

"No, it's okay. I just thought I'd do a nice little send-off for you is all. No big deal." With a shrug, Ruby added, "I'll send you a post card and an envelope with some porn to put on your new fridge."

Emma almost laughed at this, but when she saw the disappointment as her friend averted her eyes, she sighed and reached out to grab Ruby's hand.

"Rubes. You can visit us anytime. You don't have to send a post card. Or porn," the blonde told her. "Actually, please don't send porn."

Ruby forced a laugh and pulled her hand away.

"Anyway, you should probably go get ready."

"Hey. Come on. Don't be like that. Let's do lunch, okay?"

"I'm not hungry."

"Ruby. You're avoiding."

"I'm not avoiding! I just don't want-"

"I thought you wanted a send-off?"

"I did! I do. I'm just. I'm in shock a little bit, okay? I thought I'd have a few hours to hang out, and-"

"Ruby," Emma sighed. "It's going to be okay."

"I know that," the brunette quickly snapped. "I'm fine."

"You're about to cry, aren't you?"

"Shut the fuck up, okay? I'm not crying. Jesus Christ."

Without waiting for Ruby's demeanor to soften, Emma pulled her roughly in a tight hug and pressed a kiss to her temple.

"I love you, Ruby."

"You're going to forget all about me. You'll have a whole new life, and-"

"Ruby. You're my best friend. I'm not going to forget about you."

"I'm… What?"

"You're my best friend."

"Emma… Don't say that. I'm a shitty person, and I've been horrible to you. You should-"

"You've changed. I didn't believe you when you first came back into my life. I doubted it. But I believe that you're a different person now. And I still love you. I always will."

"So do you know how you're popping the question yet?"

"Ruby Lucas. Stop avoiding!"

"I'm not avoiding! I'm making conversation! Fuck, Emma. Why are you so Hell bent on making this a huge, emotional shit-show?"

"Because _you_ are making it a huge emotional shit-show. And I want you to know that that's okay."

"It's not okay!" Ruby screamed, turning away and slamming her fists against the wall. Then, voice weak and quiet, she muttered, "It's pathetic."

Wrapping her arms around Ruby from behind and holding her tightly, Emma told her, "It's not pathetic at all, okay? You've always been special to me, and nothing is going to change that. Not even moving hours and hours away. Not even getting married. Not anything."

Unable to reinforce the dam of her emotions, Ruby began to sob.

"Oh, Ruby. Ruby. You can come visit me whenever you want. You are always welcome, wherever I am."

"Regina hates me!"

"Ruby, she doesn't hate you! She's really grown to like you. You're not the person you used to be. And you're certainly not the person she thought you were at first. It's been a year. She knows you better now. And she knows how much I care for you, and how much you've done for me. She knows you're my family."

"F-Family…?"

"Yes. Family."

Whimpering through her tears, Ruby turned and quickly embraced her friend, resting her head on the girl's shoulder.

"I can't believe you're going to be getting married."

Emma laughed and replied, "I don't even know if she'll say yes."

"She'll say yes."

"What makes you so sure?"

"I'm sure," Ruby said, finally smiling. "So, how are you going to do it? Tell me everything!"

"There's this park near the apartment that's really, really nice. Tomorrow night, after we've spent out first night together, I'm going to take her out for breakfast, then bring her to the park. I figure I'll say something sappy and then… you know. Do the whole get-down-on-one-knee thing."

"Oh, Emma…" Ruby sighed, hugging the girl tightly. "That's beautiful. I'm so happy for you."

"She might not even say yes!"

"She will! Calm down. It's gonna be fine."

Emma nodded reluctantly and sat down on the couch.

* * *

"Promise you'll visit," Emma said softly, later that afternoon, holding Ruby in her arms.

"Yeah, I'll visit. Besides, somebody's gotta graffiti your building, right?"

"Oh, my God, Ruby," the blonde laughed. "Stop it."

"I'm just playing. I'm too old for that shit. Besides, you've been a good influence on me."

Ruby was smiling as she looked into Emma's eyes.

"I love you, Rubes. Be good, okay? I'll call you when I get there."

"Alright. Drive safe," the girl answered. Then, she added, "I love you too."

* * *

"Jesus fucking Christ, girl. You've got _a lot_ of shit," Emma chuckled, looking around their new apartment at all the boxes that surrounded them.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever." Regina yawned before adding, "Let's crash. I'm exhausted."

With a nod, Emma took Regina's hand and led her to the bedroom.

* * *

Emma woke her lover the next morning with a whispered, "Good morning, angel."

Regina mumbled something under her breath and rolled into Emma's arms, tucking her head against her lover's breast. Only after she was shaken slightly did she open her eyes.

"Wakey wakey, princess. I'm taking you out for breakfast."

"Now?" Regina groaned, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"Yes, dear. Now, go get in the shower."

Grumbling, Regina slipped out of the bed and into the bathroom.

* * *

"God. It's beautiful here," the brunette said softly, squeezing Emma's hand.

"It is. I like the campus, too."

"Yeah. It's a beautiful place to go to school."

"And you're a beautiful girl to spend the rest of my life with."

Regina paused, stopped walking, then looked over at Emma. Her breath hitched when she saw the girl look around the park once, then back at her, slowly crouching until she was on one knee. As Emma reached into her pocket, Regina felt a wave of dizziness crash through her, and she swayed slightly on her feet when the girl opened her mouth.

"Regina…" Emma started. "You're everything I've ever dreamed of and more. You've made me a better person. You've brought a light to my life that I never thought I'd have. And all I want in the whole world is to spend this life with you." After another pause where she sucked in a shaky breath, she added, "Regina Mills… Would you do the honor of becoming my wife?"

"Oh, my God, Emma," Regina breathed, her knees weakening. "Of course I will. Of course."

Emma rose to her feet as a broad smile spread over her lips, and when she put her arms around her bride-to-be, Regina squeezed her tightly and began to cry.

* * *

As the two lay in bed that night, Regina rested her head on Emma's chest, lulled by the rise and fall of every one of her steady breaths.

"Emma," she said softly, starting the girl from her pre-sleep haze.

"Hmm?" Emma replied sleepily, stroking her lover's hair.

"I can't believe I'm going to be your wife."

In response to this, Emma confessed, "I can't believe you said yes."

"What? Why?"

"You're too good for me. I mean, you're gonna be a lawyer, making all this money, and I…"

"Oh, Em. Please, don't say that. Honey, you're wonderful. You're so, so wonderful. I'm so lucky to have you in my life."

"And I'm so lucky to be able to call you my wife someday," Emma said.

When Emma smiled, Regina could hear it in her voice.

* * *

On their honeymoon, Emma and Regina found themselves in a hotel room in the tropics.

"I can't believe we're here right now," Regina mused happily.

"I can't believe your parents paid for this!"

"It was an anniversary present. Plus, I refused to let them give me anything for my graduation."

"God, Mrs. Mills. I'm so fucking proud of you."

With a bright smile, Emma embraced her wife and held her tightly against her chest.

"I'm so in love with you, Mrs. Mills," Regina replied.

"And I, with you."

There was a small pause as Emma leaned back on the bed against the pillows, pulling her wife down with her.

After some time, Emma asked, "Babe?"

"Yeah, honey."

"Do you, um… Do you think you'd still want kids someday?"

Regina's heart stopped, but she managed to reply, "Yes."

"With me?"

Bursting out laughing, the brunette answered, "Of course with you, silly. Who else?"

"I… I don't know. I just-"

"Do you?"

"Oh. Um. I…"

"Emma," Regina started, sitting up slowly. "If you don't want to have kids, we don't have to. It doesn't matter if I want them or not. I want what _you_ want. I want you to be happy."

"Oh, Regina. It's not my decision to make. It's _ours._ "

"Alright. So… do you?"

After another pause, Emma replied, "I do."

Regina couldn't stop the smile from spreading over her lips as she told her bride, "I love you."

* * *

 **IN THE DISTANT FUTURE**

Emma walked in the front door of their home to find Regina sitting at the dining room table sobbing.

"Regina!" she cried, rushing to her wife's side and kneeling in front of her as she took the woman's hands in her own. "What happened? What's the matter?" When Regina said nothing and began to sob more violently, Emma added, "Regina, talk to me, baby."

"She's… I just…"

"Gina. Breathe. Slow, deep breaths. Just tell me what happened. What is it? Is it Amelia?"

Their fourteen-year-old daughter, Amelia Mills, was their pride and joy. But unfortunately, things were complicated in their family, and clearly, something was very, very wrong.

Finally, after being held for several minutes, Regina managed to cry, "Sherrif Graham picked her up on Main St. by Granny's diner. She was spray painting the side of the building with graffiti. They're bringing her home now."

"Oh, my God," Emma breathed. "Fuck."

"Emma. I don't know what to do."

They were quickly interrupted by a knock at the door, and both women jumped to their feet. Emma flung the door open as soon as she reached it.

"Thank you, Sherrif Graham. Thank you so much."

"Of course, Emma. It's no problem," the sheriff replied. Then, turning to the young girl, he said, "You need to start staying out of trouble, Amelia. Your parents raised you better than this. I don't want to see you in juvie, alright? Don't make me do that to you. Don't do that to your mothers."

"Yeah, yeah," Amelia grumbled. "Whatever."

"Get inside. Now," Emma growled, grabbing the girl's arm and pulling her gently into the house. "Thank you, Sheriff Graham. Have a good night."

As soon as the door was shut, Emma turned on her daughter and shouted, "What the hell were you thinking? Don't you know he could've-"

"Let go of me!" the girl cried, jerking away from her mother.

"You're _grounded_. If you think you're doing anything but homework for the next six months, you'd better think again. If you think you're going out with your friends, ever, you are very, very wrong. If you _ever-_ "

"Emma," Regina said sternly, pulling back gently on Emma's shoulder. "That's enough."

"Amelia Mills," the blonde ground out. "We will continue this conversation in the morning. Go to your room. _Now._ "

As soon as the girl bolted up the stairs and slammed the door to her room, Regina looked at her wife sadly and said, "Emma."

"I can't fucking believe her! I can't believe she'd-"

"Emma Mills. You need to take a deep breath."

"I am taking deep breaths!" the woman yelled, stomping into the kitchen and slamming a chair into the table. "I just can't fucking believe she'd-"

"Emma! Enough!"

"How can you possibly be so calm? She's going to ruin her fucking life!"

"She's fourteen, Emma! Don't you remember when you were fourteen?"

"What are you trying to say? You think this is my fault?"

"No! Emma, _no._ That's _not_ what I meant. I just meant… I meant… There's a rush, right? Isn't that what you told me once?"

Blinking several times and staring blankly at her wife, Emma went silent, her chest heaving from the labored breaths she was taking.

"Emma," Regina said, more softly. "She's young. Her brain isn't even fully formed yet. Executive functions are limited, and she has very little judgment regarding her own behavior. She's just going through a phase. She'll learn and grow as she gets older."

" _Why_ would you say that? _You_ didn't act this way when you were young! She's going to get herself hurt!"

"Not every kid develops at the same pace, Emma."

"Why is our son like you, but our daughter is like me? Have I set a bad example for her? What did I do wrong to make her-"

"Henry is more like me. You're right. But Amelia is just growing, okay? She struggles emotionally."

"But she wasn't abused or neglected like I was. We love her, don't we? We care for her. We take care of her. We give her everything she wants _and_ we set limits. Why can't she just-"

"Why are you getting so upset about this?"

"Because I don't want her to turn out like me! I don't want her to get hurt! I don't want her working as a secretary at some stupid office just answering phones all day like me because all she has is a high school diploma! I want her to be like you and Henry. I want her to succeed. I don't want her to end up feeling worthless like I do. I want her to have everything she's ever dreamed of. And she's going to throw it all away if she keeps going this way. Fights at school, stealing, defacing public property… It's all the same shit I did. And I ruined my life."

"Emma. That's not true! And there's nothing wrong with being a secretary! And… wait. You feel worthless…?"

Sighing as she sat down and hanging her head in her hands, Emma's eyes began to fill with tears.

"Yes."

"I'm… I never realized…"

"Mom?" a voice cracked, coming from behind them.

"Shit," Emma cursed, standing up quickly. "Amelia, what are you-"

"You think I'm worthless?"

" _No,_ honey! No!" the blonde gasped, starting to cry. "Of course not. Oh, God, baby girl… I didn't mean it like that. I just meant… Oh, fuck. Amelia, I'm so sorry."

"You think I'm worthless."

"Sweetheart, your mother and I are just worried about you. We don't want you to give away all the wonderful opportunities you have. We want you to take full advantage of every one of the choices you have. And they're your choices to make, but we want you to make those choices wisely. We want you to take care of yourself. You're getting older, and we can't control everything you do anymore. And that's scary. For both of us. We just don't want to see you regret the choices you make now."

"You think I'm throwing my life away."

"Baby," Emma sighed, advancing toward the girl with her arms out.

"No!" Amelia screamed. "Don't touch me!"

"Amelia," Regina cut in, voice suddenly stern, but still calm. "We love you. We just want what's-"

"Don't fucking tell me you want what's best for me! You just want me to be perfect like Henry!"

"That is _not_ true," Emma told her. "We do love you. And we do want what's best for you. But more than that, we want you to have even more choices than you do now. We want to see you make good decisions now so you have more doors opened for you later in life. So you can do what _you_ want to do, when it's time. I'm terrified, Amelia. I'm terrified that you'll live my life and-"

"What's so bad about your life? You turned out fine."

"I have a shit job, Amelia. I make no money, and-"

"Mom makes plenty of money. It doesn't matter. Isn't your family enough?"

Shocked and shaken by her daughter's words, Emma answered, "Oh, honey. Of course it is… I didn't mean it like that. I just wish… I wish I could be better for all of you. That I could have achieved more in my life, to make you all proud of me. I wish I could just… take back all the stupid things I made."

"But you're fine now. You have Mom. You have Henry."

"I have _you._ "

Then, it was their daughter's turn to cry. As soon as she saw this, Emma wrapped her arms around the girl and held her tightly. This time, Amelia did not resist. Instead, she simply cried into her mother's shoulder and allowed Emma to hold her.

"I'm a failure," Amelia sobbed. "I'm a fuck up."

"You are not a fuck up, baby girl. You are so smart, and so kind. So caring. So talented. I am so, _so_ proud of you. That's why I want to see you stop these behaviors. I want to see you make good choices. I want to see you reach your full potential."

"I'm trying, Mom. I'm trying. I just… It's so hard. I feel like the only way I can feel anything is to… to do bad stuff."

With another sigh, Emma squeezed the girl tighter and kissed the top of her head, saying, "We'll work on that, okay? We'll work on it together. Please. Please, just try to stay out of trouble. For your sake, not mine."

"I'm sorry, Mama."

"I love you, Amelia."

"I love you too, sweetheart," Regina added. "So much. And I'm proud of you too."

After they had all calmed down and the women had walked their daughter to her bedroom and said goodnight, Regina and Emma sat beside each other on their own bed.

"Are you sure this isn't my fault?" Emma blurted out, after some tense silence.

"I'm sure. She's stressed. She's struggling. And that's okay."

"Are you sure she'll-"

"She'll be fine, Em. It'll be alright."

"I'm sorry, Gina."

"Don't, Emma. None of this is your fault. She's going to be fine. And we'll be with her the whole way down her path, whatever struggles it brings. She'll be okay."

Starting to cry again, Emma hugged her wife tightly and finally began to forgive herself for the life she had led in her adolescence. More importantly, she found herself feeling more grateful than ever to have the love and support of her family.


End file.
